ignis
by DiscordianSamba
Summary: AU. With Lotor on the throne, the Blade of Marmora has gone dark. Still mourning the loss of someone he thought of as family, Shiro doesn't even have time to dwell on his own chronic headaches much anymore. But when Lotor sends them on a mission to a colony of imperial deserters, he's about to discover that the dead aren't dead- and that maybe he's not who he thinks he is either.
1. those lost, things found

As promised in my last update of flicker, he's the brand new story that I've been working on! Actually, I've had this plot in mind since before the release of the sixth season but I kept ended up delaying actually putting it out because I wasn't 100% sure what approach I wanted to take in telling it, even if I was sure about certain aspects of the story. So, here we are, a post-Naxzela AU! This is just the prologue, since I felt like it needed one, so it's not as long as some of my normal chapters.

I'm really excited to write this one! Like I said, I've been working on this idea for a long time now, so I'm happy to finally get the chance to put it out there. Hope to have you all along with me!

* * *

**ignis**

**prologue**

**those lost, things found**

* * *

"You know, there's no need for you to force yourself to accompany me."

Drawing in a long breath, Shiro forced himself to look up at Allura. He wasn't surprised to see the concern in her eyes, but there was a weariness to her gaze that caught him completely off guard. He knew that even the princess got worn out from time to time, but normally she wouldn't let something like that show, even to them.

But then, these weren't exactly normal circumstances.

"I'm fine." Shiro lied. "I just need to keep busy."

Allura frowned, looking unconvinced. "You've been running yourself ragged, Shiro. Ever since-"

"-ever since _what_, Allura?" Shiro cut her off, suddenly losing his patience- and just as quickly regretting it. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Shiro closed his eyes, letting out a long breath. "Sorry."

"I understand, you know." Allura told him. "When I learned about Altea..."

"Then you should know why I need to keep busy." Shiro told her, cutting her off a second time without fully meaning to. He couldn't help it.

Maybe Allura was right- maybe he _did _need to rest. But it felt like every second that he wasn't doing something was wasted time. The last thing Shiro wanted right now was to be left alone with his own thoughts for any length of time. Keeping himself busy was the only way he could fight off the numbness that had gripped him ever since he had stepped on the bridge of the Castle and learned exactly what it had taken to defuse Naxzela.

_"Good work, Keith."_

He grit his teeth, trying not to react to the unbidden memory of his own words. It wasn't the first time, and it wouldn't be the last- whenever he let himself stop for more than a few minutes, they always came back, playing out over and over again in his head. Mocking him for how naive he had been, how stupid he'd been not to realize that Keith wasn't there for him to praise anymore. How stupid he'd been to think that they could have come out of this war without losing someone.

No, that wasn't quite right. He always thought they would. He just... he thought it would be _him_. Not... not Keith.

Anyone but Keith.

But it _was _Keith. It was Keith who had taken down the shields on the cruiser. Keith, who had done it knowing full well it would be a suicide run. And now all he could do was try and pick up the pieces.

The worst part was how _numb _he felt. He felt like he should be feeling _something_, but he just didn't. He hadn't even cried yet, but he imagined it would come in time. He'd held it together for weeks after he'd gotten his diagnosis, until he'd finally reached his breaking point. It had only been a few days since the battle for Naxzela.

"Sorry." Shiro apologized again. "You're right, I know. But I can't... I'm not ready. I feel like if I stop, then I'll stop for good."

Allura looked up at him in understanding- and he knew that she _did _understand, probably more than anyone else. The other paladins were reeling over Keith's loss too- maybe not to the extent he was, but nobody was accepting his death with ease. But none of them had known the kind of loss that Allura had- the kind of soul deep pain that just left you numb, feeling like you'd been disconnected from reality. Every day went by in a daze, like they were part of some horrible dream that he just couldn't wake up from.

He wished he could just wake up. Make his way to the training deck to find Keith there, pushing himself too hard as usual. He'd chastise him and drag him to the kitchen, where everyone would be waiting, and they could have breakfast together. Or maybe this whole thing had been a dream, and he would wake up at the Garrison with two flesh and blood arms. Keith and Adam would both be there, bickering over something inconsequential at the breakfast table like usual.

But he knew he wouldn't. This wasn't a dream, awful as it was. This was reality. Keith was gone, and he had to face that.

"I know how you feel." Allura told him. "But you'll stop for good either way if you keep this up much longer, and Voltron _needs _its leader."

Shiro closed his eyes, biting back another protest that he would be fine. There was a double meaning to Allura's words, one that she would never dare say out loud. But he knew she was right- Voltron did need its leader, and right now, he wasn't exactly in great shape. If he kept going like he was now, he would only wreck himself sooner or later- worst case scenario, he'd drag the rest of Voltron down with him.

And then what would have Keith's sacrifice been for?

"Okay," Shiro finally conceded, "-I'll rest after this."

Allura smiled, though it didn't quite reach her eyes. "Is that a promise?"

"It's a promise." Shiro said, before thinking better of it. "At least, I'll _try _to rest."

Unsurprisingly, he'd been having even more trouble sleeping lately. Even when he managed to fall asleep, he'd wake up barely half an hour later, drenched in sweat, trying not to cry out because of yet another nightmare- an actual one this time, not just the one he was living in. Those were the only times he felt something other than numbness, though the feeling always quickly came back.

"Perhaps Coran can help you with that." Allura suggested. "He has a number of sleep aids that might be useful."

"That might be a good idea." Shiro admitted. "As long as none of them involve any brain worms."

Allura huffed slightly, the closest thing he'd heard her make to a laugh in days. He wondered how long it had been since _he _laughed.

"Don't worry," Allura assured him, "-I'm positive Coran learned his lesson after the last time. Just make sure he didn't get the medication from any Unilu."

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind." Shiro said.

Allura nodded. "You really _could _head back to the ship, you know. Kolivan and I will be able to handle this."

Shiro shook his head. "We've already put this off long enough as it is already, and this is _Lotor _we're dealing with. We need to display a united front."

Unbidden, his thoughts drifted back towards Keith- back towards how desperate he had been to catch Lotor. It had driven a wedge between him and the rest of the team, and before he knew it, he'd started to pull away from them. Eventually, he pulled away entirely, leaving for the Blade of Marmora.

He regretted that every day now. If only he'd done things differently, then maybe Keith would still be here. Even if dying here was his fate, then maybe at least he would have been able to spend a little more time with him, rather than just interacting with him on the other side of a screen. It wasn't like they never talked, it was just... it wasn't the same.

Distant, Shiro thought. It had always been so distant.

"I suppose you are right." Allura reluctantly agreed. "I only wish we knew what his intentions were."

It had been days since Prince Lotor had turned himself over to the Voltron Coalition- he'd arrived just a few minutes after Keith had slammed his tiny Galra fighter into the shield of that cruiser. If he'd just shown up just a few minutes earlier...

Clenching his fists, Shiro narrowed his eyes. He knew it wasn't fair to be angry at Lotor about that. There was a lot of stuff he could be angry at him about- but Keith's death wasn't one of them, no matter how much he wanted to be. Even Lotor, who always seemed to be about two or three steps ahead of them on any given day had no possible way of knowing what a few minutes of delay had wrought.

Having Lotor here was just yet another complication. Part of him was grateful for it, since the logistics of dealing with him and his offer to open up a discussion had been among the many things that had kept him occupied, but part of him would just rather not have him around at all. He was just one extra cog that they hadn't planned for, and making sure that the terraforming plant couldn't be used like it had again was a big enough one already.

That was what Coran, Hunk, Pidge, and Matt had spent most of their time working on. He suspected that they were using it to distract themselves- especially Matt, who had been there, but hadn't been able to stop Keith. They were all coping in their own ways- better than he was, at any rate.

There were already plans in the works to make Naxzela into a secondary Coalition capital, to go alongside Olkarion, but in order to do that, they would need to make sure it was safe first. It was also where they had chosen to house Lotor- the Galra had left behind several prisons that had proved effective in dealing with the few Galra who had been left behind.

Lotor's prison was special, though. Housed deep underground, it would be a difficult place for even the capable Galran prince to escape from. The elevator they were on now would take them straight there. Kolivan was already waiting for them there- he could pick him out as the elevator descended, his dark armor sticking out like a sore thumb, his face hidden behind his mask.

He wanted to be angry at Kolivan too, for that matter. Keith was his responsibility, and he'd failed him. He should have stopped him, kept him on Senfama. Maybe if he had, he would still be alive.

And the rest of them would be dead.

Then it would be _Keith _who was the one suffering, as the only paladin left alive. He wouldn't wish that on him either. Senfama would have been well out of the way of the explosion, but it had also been Keith who realized that something was suspicious about that Galra cruiser, and Keith who had rallied the rebels to attack it. If he hadn't, they would _all _be dead, nearly all forms of resistance against the Galra Empire taken out in one fell swoop.

He felt a gentle touch on his shoulder, Allura looking up at him with a deep frown. "I'm sure we can find some way to honor his memory."

"We keep fighting. That's how." Shiro said, squaring his shoulders as the elevator arrived at its destination. Beyond them, Lotor was waiting. "Keith's sacrifice ensured our survival. We owe it to him to take down the Galra Empire, once and for all. And if Lotor can help us do that... then maybe we should listen to what he has to say."

Allura's frown didn't fade, but she did give his shoulder a soft squeeze, releasing it. "I suppose you are right. I am simply loathe to trust him."

"Can't say I blame you." Shiro admitted. "I'm not exactly thrilled at the prospect either."

"What if this is all some sort of trick?" Allura asked.

"Then we proceed with caution." Shiro said.

Heaving a sigh, Allura's shoulders slumped. "Things seemed so much simpler before."

Shiro said nothing to that. Didn't give voice to how much he wished he could go back to _before_\- back to when Keith was still alive.

The worst part was, he thought, was that there wasn't even a body left to bury.

* * *

"Report."

"Our search team scoured the area as requested." The Blade before him reported- _Ilun_, Kolivan only dimly managed to recall. His thoughts had been scattered recently. He knew how unlike him it was- he should be accustomed to losing Blades at this point, but he'd never lost a Blade so _young _before. And while he knew that what had driven Keith to his death were not his orders, but Keith's own actions, it didn't change the fact that he had been entrusted with the red paladin, and had allowed him to die.

It didn't change the fact that Krolia's son was _dead_.

"And?" Kolivan asked. "Did you find it?"

"We did." Ilun confirmed, holding out a wrapped bundle. "And we think you need to see it."

Kolivan frowned, glancing up at Ilun. Her face was unreadable- no doubt she was drawing upon her training, masking her true feelings. Training which Keith should still be completing, he couldn't help but think.

He accepted the bundle without a second thought, carefully unwrapping it. He knew what he would find. Even if there was no way for his body to have survived the impact, it was difficult to destroy a luxite blade. It had taken days of searching the wreckage to find it, but he had confidence that his Blades would be able to locate it. All that remained was deciding what to do with it- if he should return it to Krolia and inform her of her son's passing, or if he should return it to the paladins, to the one called Shiro whom Keith had been so close to.

Even if he was increasingly wary of the paladins these days.

Naxzela had been too well planned. Surveys had indicated that the terraforming plant had been there for deca-phoebs, possibly leftover from Altea's heyday. Princess Allura couldn't confirm one way or another if they had such a plant on Naxzela or not, but it wasn't impossible. However, it wasn't the _plant _he was worried about- rather, it was the device that the witch had used to activate it.

She had been ready for them.

But in order for that to happen, someone would have had to leak the plans. And while there were dozens of moving parts in place, many far more public than Kolivan would have liked, he had seen to it that there would be no leaks to the Galra Empire. He hadn't failed.

Which meant there was only one place left where such a leak could have come from- and that was the paladins themselves.

He shook the thought off, instead focusing on the blade now resting in his hands. Its sigil still glowed, but so long as Krolia lived, its glow would not fade completely. It was rare for one blade to share the life energy of two people- even that of mother and child.

Krolia _would _kill him, he thought. Perhaps he should elect a successor before he departed to tell her of her son's passing. Perhaps in true Galra fashion, he should choose _her _as his successor. She had been with the Blade for long enough to qualify for such a position, and she was more than skilled enough at leading. Under the circumstances, he couldn't even be that cross with her for concealing her level of involvement with the local populace during the three deca-phoebs she had been stranded on Earth.

He should still bring the blade to her, he decided. It would only be proper.

He glanced back up. Ilun was still watching him expectantly. He frowned, having half a mind to dismiss her, before he begun to question _why_. She had said that they thought he needed to see the blade for himself. Was it simply for closure? Or was there something more- something about the blade itself that he needed to pay attention to.

He huffed slightly. His thoughts truly _had _been scattered as of late, to not realize something so simple sooner. If it wasn't Keith's death, or the potential leak, then it was Lotor. It was impossible to discern the prince's motives, nor the sincerity of his claim of desiring peace and an end to this long war.

He doubted those answers lay in the blade he held- but something did.

Taking care to study the blade itself, Kolivan realized something. He could still feel Krolia's life force, strong as it ever was- but there was something else beyond that, something _more_.

Something that by all means, shouldn't be there.

Keith's life force wasn't gone.

Schooling his expression into a neutral one, Kolivan focused on that energy. It was faint, but he could feel it. Unlike all the questions he didn't currently have the answers to, this one _did _have an answer- and a clear cut one at that. The only way such a thing were possible was if Keith were still alive somehow.

But that was impossible. They hadn't found a trace of him in the wreckage, and surely he wouldn't have survived this long drifting in space, even if he wasn't heavily injured. Unless...

...unless he had been dragged along with the wreckage that had been pulled in when the Galra cruiser jumped into hyperspace. Rising to his feet, Kolivan ran through the possibilities- the worst of which was that the witch had located him herself, and was using him to her own ends. Slightly less worse was that he had been found by the Galra commander of the cruiser, and was being held prisoner- but no. Though faint, the life force he could feel was holding steady. He was weak, but his hold on life was at least somewhat strong.

Which left a third option- that he had been rescued by a third party that had come along after the cruiser and the debris it had pulled along with it had come out of hyperspace, or after the debris itself, along with Keith, had slipped out of the hyperspace tunnel early. There were certainly documented cases of such things happening.

In which case, it was highly likely he was receiving medical treatment somewhere.

"Gather a team." Kolivan instructed. "I want every medical facility we know of searched."

"Sir?" Ilun asked, arching a brow.

Kolivan stopped himself, realizing what he was ordering- what essentially amounted to a search and rescue mission, however dubious the _rescue _part might be. But even as he did, he was already rationalizing it- Keith was a paladin, and one who was capable of flying both the red and black lions at that. He was needed.

He was also still just a child.

"You have your orders." Kolivan said firmly. "Every medical facility and every doctor, including the underground ones. Find him."

Ilun stared at him for a moment longer, before her shoulders went tense. "Understood. Should we inform the paladins, or will you handle the matter yourself?"

"No." Kolivan's answer surprised even himself, but he stuck firmly with it. "We keep this matter within the Blade."

Ilun looked at him questioningly, but realizing that there was no further explanation forthcoming, she simply ducked her head, leaving the room to begin the process of putting together a new search team. He watched her go, waiting until he was certain she was gone to look back down at the blade again, still held tight within one of his hands.

Someone had leaked the information about Naxzela to the Galra Empire. That someone had to be one of the paladins. If his hunch was correct, and he was to inform them now, he might truly seal Keith's fate. It was impossible to say what kind of condition he might be in, but the odds of him being able to move around freely were low. He may not even be conscious. He would be defenseless.

Before the Galra Empire could catch word of his survival, the Blade of Marmora would find Keith and secure him. Only then would he inform the paladins.

And mark his words- they _would _find him. He had failed Krolia's son once. He wouldn't do it again.


	2. the deserter's colony

Okay, the first official chapter is done! I feel like I should clarify a few things about the timeline off the bat- there's been a time skip since the prologue, of about just over a year! Lotor has been reigning as Emperor for pretty much most of that time, give or take a month or two, but he and Allura haven't been to Oriande yet. The events of Omega Shield happened, just not the parts where Shiro was affected by Haggar going to Oriande since she obviously hasn't been there either. Hope that helps!

Thanks for reading!

* * *

**ignis**

**chapter one**

**the deserter's colony**

* * *

"Ah, Princess Allura and the black paladin. How good of you to come."

"We would hardly ignore such an urgent summons." Allura said, rather diplomatically even as she allowed a small smile to grace her face. "We assumed it had to be a matter of importance if you called us both."

"Not yet, but it very well could become one." Lotor said, rising from _his _throne.

It was hard to believe sometimes that it had been nearly a year since Lotor had seized control of the Galra Empire- with their help no less. Or well, _his _help. The other paladins had been less than thrilled with the idea of dropping Lotor off at the Kral Zera at the time, but he'd seen the benefit in it and had acted on instinct. Thanks to that, the Galra Empire was now under the control of an ally of the Voltron Coalition.

Or at least, a sizable chunk of it was.

Shiro frowned at the thought. There were still countless segments of the Empire that were in full revolt. Sendak's was the largest, leading the Fires of Purification, but they had been quiet for some time now. The former Commander Gnov was less trouble in comparison, but she was a lot more wily and less straightforward than Sendak, which could prove troublesome all on its own.

Haggar and her druids had been completely silent, which was most worrisome of all. He suspected she was planning something, only he had no idea what.

And the Blade of Marmora, their first Galra allies... the Blade of Marmora had gone dark.

The last they had heard from Kolivan had been a month or so after the battle of Naxzela. At the time, they hadn't realized it would be their last contact with him, but that same night, the Blade of Marmora simply disappeared. All known active agents left their posts, and while he could only assume that there were several still entrenched in the Galra Empire, he didn't know who they were or even where they might be.

It was unnerving. Up until then, Kolivan had given the impression that business in the Blade was running as per usual- they hadn't even noticed anything amiss. They didn't want to think that the Blade of Marmora had become their enemies, but they couldn't ignore the possibility.

He wondered if this would have happened if Keith were still alive. He had been their bridge, linking the two groups as both paladin and Blade. But now he was gone- they had passed the one year anniversary of his death _months _back.

It still didn't feel real to him.

"What's the problem, Lotor?" Shiro asked, burying his own thoughts. He couldn't let himself get distracted from the task at hand.

"There is a colony," Lotor began, "-a colony of Galra that exists outside of the control of the Galra Empire. But unlike the ones that have only gone into revolt after my ascension to the throne, this one has been in revolt since my father's time."

"Deserters?" Shiro asked.

"Something to that effect, yes. Not loyal to my father, at any rate." Lotor nodded. "They remained hidden from the Empire for the duration of his reign, though I managed to stumble upon them in my travels during my long exile. They are a peaceful lot, in so far as any Galra _can _be peaceful."

The remark was spoken with no harshness, or any emotion at all. Just a fact, stated plainly. The Galra were a warrior culture at their core, and even peaceful Galra were known to engage in violent- if not rule and honor-bound- traditions. He'd seen that much in the Blade of Marmora, when Keith had been forced to undergo their trials.

Maybe if he had been more forceful then, Keith never would have joined the Blade, and never would have lost his life. At every turn, he could see places where he could have stopped Keith, but didn't have the foresight to. For the Blade of Marmora, sacrifice was normal- he should have never left Keith in that kind of environment. He should have fought harder to have him stay as a paladin.

A paladin without a lion, he thought grimly. He never would have taken back either black _or _red. He could have forced Keith to stay, but he would have been even more miserable as the sixth wheel than he would have ever been with the Blade.

But at least he would be _alive_.

"If they were not loyal to your father, then what seems to be the problem?" Allura asked, her smile fading into a slight frown. "It does not sound as if they have caused any trouble."

"Not directly." Lotor said. "But there is a bit of a... _dispute_, it seems, between the colony and the planet that the moon it is located on orbits. It has the potential to turn violent."

"Go on." Allura said, her expression growing grimmer still.

"The planet in question is known as Viridi, located on the outskirts of the Galra Empire. In a way, it is not dissimilar to your home planet of Earth, in that it is the only planet in its system capable of supporting life." Lotor explained, glancing over in his direction as he spoke. It had ceased to surprise him how much the prince turned emperor knew about Earth and it's solar system- he was nothing if not well prepared. "It is how it has evaded the Empire's interest for so long, and why it made such an ideal location for the deserters to set up their colony, far from my father's eyes."

Shiro frowned. "If this planet is the only habitable one in the system, how did these deserters even set up the colony in the first place?"

"The Galra have always been a rather hardy race." Allura answered for Lotor. "They can survive conditions in which others cannot."

"Which makes us ideal for terraforming." Lotor concluded. "In the much more traditional way, rather than using the Altean method of using specialized plants to do it for them."

Allura grimaced, not having forgotten the damage one of those very same plants had nearly done. If it hadn't been for Keith...

...well, none of them would be here.

"I will admit, there are certain... _advantages _to doing it the more natural way." Allura said. "What can you tells us of current situation?"

"I have sent several envoys to the colony in an attempt to open up negotiations," Lotor began, "-but all have been refused. And while that is... _troubling_, it is far from the main issue. That lies in the changing opinions of the Viridi. When the colony was first set up, originally they had no issue with it, since the moon wasn't of any use to them."

"This was, I am assuming, before the Galra Empire grew in power?" Allura inquired.

"Quite." Lotor said. "I believe that the colony began a few deca-phoebs after the destruction of Altea, when it started to become clear that my father's greed had no limits. He pushed for even further militarization. Anyone who could not serve to further the Empire's campaign of conquest was deemed useless. Naturally, there were a number of Galra who rejected that."

"So they left." Shiro said.

"The ones who survived did." Lotor frowned. "The era after the destruction of Altea was nothing but one massive purge of the Galra populace. Anyone who didn't agree with my father and his Empire's ambitions were imprisoned and eventually killed. I myself was too young to remember most of it, but I can understand why even the hardiest of Galra might choose to flee rather than stick with the Empire."

Allura narrowed her eyes, a grim expression set on her face. "Are you saying Zarkon slaughtered his own people?"

"Yes." Lotor said simply. "I admit, the Blade of Marmora would know more about the subject than I. I don't suppose they've reestablished contact...?"

"No." Shiro said. "There's been no word."

Lotor frowned, allowing himself to appear troubled for the span of a few seconds. "I see. Regardless, we may be hearing from them soon. I have long since suspected that this colony possesses ties to the Blade, though I have never been able to confirm it."

Shiro felt his frown deepen. The Blade of Marmora's continued silence was a troubling issue, but it had been on the backburner in recent months. As far as they knew, they hadn't made any moves- but if it was as Lotor said, and the Blade did have some kind of connection to this colony, then that might be changing soon. Given that they still didn't know what Kolivan's motives were for withdrawing the Blade, that wasn't a thought that rested easy with him.

Especially when he factored in the fact that while they might not have any way of knowing what the Blade was up to, he didn't doubt _they _did. Kolivan was too cautious for a total withdrawal- only the Blades whose identities they knew had vanished. He had no way to confirm it, but he was positive that there were still Blades left in the Empire.

"So I take it the Viridi no longer approve of the colony." Allura said, putting the discussion back on track.

"In a sense." Lotor said. "The Viridi have suffered a number of natural disasters in recent deca-phoebs. As a result, the amount of habitable land has been drastically reduced. They simply no longer have enough land left to support their surviving population, not for a long period of time, at any rate."

"And if the Galra have been terraforming their moon since the start of Zarkon's reign, I would imagine it has come a rather long way." Allura mused. "I think I am beginning to see the issue."

"Indeed." Lotor frowned. "They wish to set up a colony of their own on the moon, which by all rights, no one has an issue with. The Galra who live there have been trading with the Viridi for generations, and for most of that time, they have had good relations with them."

"So what's the problem?" Shiro asked.

"The problem is that there is a small but extremely vocal number of Viridi who don't wish to simply cohabit." Lotor explained. "They would rather see the Galra removed entirely. That would result in hundreds of Galra who have no ties to the Empire being displaced from their homes. An influx of Galra refugees is exactly what we do not need right now."

"They would be welcome in the Coalition, of course." Allura said absently. "But you're right. There are still many among the Coalition who still do not fully trust the Galra, and even worse, people like Sendak might try to use the situation to their advantage."

Shiro grimaced. Hundreds of non-Empire aligned Galra being displaced from their homes had the makings of some pretty powerful propaganda. Regardless of the colony's ties to the Galra Empire, and thus, to the Coalition, it wouldn't be a good look if they just sat around and did nothing to stop it. Used right, it could result in entire sections of the Galra Empire splintering away from Lotor's control. And he was right- that was the last thing they needed right now.

"So what is it that you need us to do?" Shiro asked.

"I need you to go to the colony and negotiate an arrangement between the Galra and the Viridi." Lotor instructed. "They may not accept my negotiators, but I hardly think they'll turn away Voltron. Provided of course, you have the time."

"Sounds easy enough." Shiro said. "And I don't think we have any other upcoming missions."

"Nothing that the rest of the Coalition cannot handle on their own." Allura said, shaking her head. "And I _am _a bit concerned about the situation myself."

"Excellent." Lotor said, clearly pleased. "Though of course, you needn't go alone. I can arrange for one of my lieutenants to accompany, if you wish."

Exchanging a quick glance with Allura, Shiro looked back towards Lotor, giving the prince turned emperor a curt nod. In spite of working with Lotor and the Galra for nearly a year now, there was still a lot about Galran culture they didn't know. Having an actual Galra around might help with the negotiations.

"We'll take you up on that, then." Shiro said.

"Very good." Lotor said. "I will see to it that First Lieutenant Krolia meets you at your ship. She's dealt with them a few times in the past under my orders. She can give you the coordinates for the colony."

"Then, if there is nothing else to discuss...?" Allura trailed off.

"Nothing at the moment." Lotor told her. "We have heard no word of Sendak nor Gnov, or any of the other, smaller factions, but I will be sure to inform you if that changes."

Allura gave him a curt nod. "We will do what we can to resolve this situation peacefully."

"I have great faith in your abilities, princess." Lotor smiled. "I look forward to your results."

Shiro turned on his heel to leave, before he paused, turning back towards Lotor. "Just one more thing, actually. Does this moon have a name?"

"Ignis. I believe it is called Ignis."

* * *

Just like Lotor promised, there was someone waiting for them at the docking bay. Based on the lieutenant's armor that she wore, he was pretty sure it was safe to guess that the Galra woman was First Lieutenant Krolia.

He wasn't quite sure what he'd expected when Lotor had mentioned her. The Galra were diverse enough that it was hard to anticipate what any of them might look like. Still, he had to admit, she was more... _human _wasn't the right word, but it was the only word that he could come up with to describe her. She was more human looking than he would have thought- no fur, no scales, just purple skin. She was taller than him, but was still significantly shorter than other Galra, but based on how she held herself, he never would have guessed that if he weren't meeting her in person.

Her eyes had pupils, a vibrant violet color that reminded him with a pang of Keith.

"Princess Allura." Krolia stuck out her hand, her tone pure business. "I am Krolia."

"Krolia." Allura smiled, accepting the woman's arm. "It is a pleasure to meet you. I hope we aren't imposing upon you."

It was strange to see Allura engaging in the traditional Galran greeting of a forearm clasp, but although she still had her own hang ups about the Galra, she had come a long way since she'd first come out of the cryopod. Between the Blade of Marmora, and now working with Lotor, she'd had plenty of chances to see more of the Galra, and had begun to understand that even within the Empire, things weren't entirely so black and white. The pain and betrayal she felt over Zarkon's actions would probably always be there, but she wasn't going to let it get in the way of their best shot at finally obtaining lasting peace.

"Hardly." Krolia said, releasing Allura's arm and glancing towards him. She narrowed her eyes slightly, though her expression otherwise remained completely neutral. "The black paladin, I presume."

He didn't think much of it. Maybe she just wasn't that wild about working with the paladins. She wouldn't be the first.

"Takashi Shirogane, at your service." Shiro introduced himself, sticking out his own arm. "I look forward to working with you."

"Likewise." Krolia said, grasping his forearm. He fought the urge to wince- she had quite the grip, enough that he could feel it even in his prosthetic. Thankfully she didn't hold his forearm for long, releasing it and turning back to Allura. "Are the rest of the paladins onboard?"

Allura nodded. "They should be waiting on the bridge with Coran to see what our meeting with Lotor was about."

"Good." Krolia said. "The less time we waste, the better."

Allura frowned slightly. "I wasn't aware the mission was quite that urgent."

"Not yet." Krolia said. "But these situations have a way of escalating."

"Yes, of course." Allura quickly agreed, her expression becoming more grave. "We can head straight to the bridge, then. I'm sure one of the paladins can spare a few minutes after we debrief to give you a quick tour of the Castle. You will be staying with us, won't you?"

Krolia wordlessly inclined her head, in a way that reminded him of Keith. She sort of looked like him, he thought with a pang- it wasn't just the eyes, but they way she held herself, the shape of her jaw, and even the style of her hair, though he didn't quite know if Keith was the type to sport a rat-tail. He was suddenly seized by the knowledge that Keith's mother was Galra, and for a brief second, he wondered if she could be Krolia.

He quickly dismissed it. Keith's mother would have to be a Blade, and he doubted that Lotor wouldn't have _thoroughly _vetted anyone he trusted enough to go on a mission with them. Krolia probably wasn't related, even if it _would _be just like the universe to throw Keith's mother at them only after he'd died.

Besides, Keith's mother should have every reason to hate them- himself especially. He didn't know her story, but with the universe in the state it was in, it wasn't hard to guess that she'd probably left him behind on Earth for his own safety. Not only had he dragged him out into the very war she was trying to protect him from, but he had also allowed him to die.

(He knew, logically, Keith's death wasn't his fault. He hadn't _asked _him to die for him- for all of them. But the sense of guilt was still there.)

Taking up the rear behind Allura and Krolia, Shiro forced himself again not to dwell on Keith. It had been a year now- _past _that, actually. He didn't expect to be over it, but he'd thought... well, not that he would have moved on, that maybe it would have gotten a little easier to deal with. Maybe he'd gotten to the point where he didn't need to work constantly to forget about the pain, but he hadn't gotten any further.

What he _had _gotten good at was faking it.

Heaving a sigh, Shiro ran a hand through his forelock. He had to set a good example for the other paladins, he knew. He was the only adult, Coran aside, and sometimes it felt like he wasn't exactly being the best role model- especially lately. Keith's death didn't help matters, though it wasn't the root cause of his issues. No, those had started _long _before Keith had sacrificed his life for them.

Coran's sleep aids had worked like a charm, but sadly, the Altean hadn't been able to conjure up anything for his now chronic headaches. He'd learned to deal with them, but they could make him snappy at the worst of times, and irritable at others. He knew he could be- and _should _be- better than this, but some days just holding it together was all he could manage.

The team was... understanding, or at least, they _tried _to be. But he knew he'd stepped on more than a few toes, Lance and Allura's especially. They always forgave him, but sometimes he couldn't help but feel that they really shouldn't have to. They had every right to be angry at him.

(Even if the darker part sometimes whispered that all the choices he'd made had been _right_. That _he _should be the one angry at them, not the other way around.)

"Princess, you're back!" Coran's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. They must have reached the bridge already. It was either a shorter walk than he thought, or he must have been really out of it. It was more likely the latter.

"That didn't take long." Pidge observed, tilting her head upwards to look at Krolia. "Who's this?"

"This is First Lieutenant Krolia." Allura introduced the Galran woman with a smile. "She'll be joining us on our next mission."

"Next mission?" Hunk asked, his lips twisting into a frown. "It's not Sendak again, is it?"

"Not this time." Allura shook her head. "It's actually more of a diplomatic endeavor."

"Good, because I am _not _in the mood to deal with tall, dark, and scary again." Lance rolled his eyes. "Seriously, you think the guy would catch a hint."

"He's a bad guy, Lance." Pidge adjusted her glasses. "They generally don't take hints."

Clearing her throat, Allura flashed the paladins a broad smile, while also sending them a pointed look. It was something he'd only seen Allura pull off, and it always silenced them without fail. Lance, Pidge, and Hunk all quieted down, waiting for whatever Allura was going to say next.

"Krolia, these are Lance, Hunk, and Pidge." Allura said, with a sweeping gesture towards the paladins. "They pilot the red, yellow, and green lions respectively."

"Well met." Krolia said.

She didn't question why Lance flew the red lion, and yet his armor was blue. They were long since past that. The fact that Keith had ever been a paladin had begun to fade from the public consciousness, reduced to a mere footnote in Voltron's history. It didn't feel right, even if Shiro also knew that Keith wasn't the type to care about something like that.

Allura had wanted to build a grand statue, since that was apparently how Alteans memorialized people. He'd managed to talk her out of it, but now sometimes he wondered if that was such a good idea. He couldn't imagine Keith wanting a huge statue of himself, but it would be a lot better than just being forgotten.

Not forgotten, Shiro reminded himself. They still remembered him. They might not talk about him much, but he knew that was just how the paladins coped.

(Even if sometimes it just felt like they were forgetting him too.)

He listened with half an ear as Allura went on to introduce Coran, and then moved on to detailing exactly what their next mission would involve. Gazing out the window, he wondered what Keith would think about them working together with the Galra Empire- and with Lotor- like this. He'd always had an issue with the Galran prince, and part of the reason he'd left them in the first place was to pursue Lotor.

Dwelling on it didn't produce any answers. He'd known Keith for a long time, but sometimes it felt like he still didn't fully understand him. And now that he was gone, he never would.

"Shiro?" Allura's voice broke him out of his thoughts.

Blinking, Shiro turned to look at her. He must have spaced out again, because not only were Krolia and Hunk gone, the yellow paladin presumably having been selected to play tour guide, but everyone else was getting in position to undock the Castle from Central Command.

"Sorry," Shiro gave her an apologetic smile, "-what did you say?"

"I asked if you were alright." Allura told him with a frown. "You seem..."

"Distracted?" Shiro finished.

"I wouldn't have put it so bluntly, but yes." Allura said. "If there is anything on your mind-"

"I'm fine." Shiro quickly assured her, offering her what he knew was a strained smile. "But thanks."

"She looks a bit like him, doesn't she?" Allura asked, glancing back towards the bridge doors. "Krolia."

Shiro blinked. He hadn't thought anyone else had noticed. Honestly, he'd already started to convince himself that he just was seeing things, but he guessed not. "A bit."

"You don't think she's...?" Allura trailed off.

Shiro shook his head. "I don't think so."

There was a slight doubtful note to Allura's continued frown, but she didn't push. He almost wished she would- sometimes it felt like the other paladins were walking on eggshells around him these days. He didn't know if it was just because of Keith or because of his temper flare-ups, or both, but at times it could get to be a little too much. He didn't want to be treated like he was either delicate or unpredictable, but this was his issue, and he had to find a way to deal with it on its own.

"I'll just get to my station." Shiro told her.

Allura didn't stop him, but he did hear her sigh slightly as he left. He felt something twinge deep inside of him, but he pushed it back. That wasn't something to get angry about.

For all that he used to tell Keith patience yielded focus, some days it felt like he was short on both.

* * *

Allura had opted to wormhole into the system Viridi and Ignis were located in, rather than directly to the colony's coordinates. The situation was probably tense enough as it was, he couldn't imagine that the paladins of Voltron showing up completely out of the blue in their skies would make it even less so. Better to give them at least _some _warning that they were on the way rather than drop in on them unannounced.

"Open a hailing frequency, Coran." Allura instructed, once they had completed the jump.

"Yes, princess." Coran began to comply, before he turned back, glancing towards Allura. "To which one?"

"We will start with the Galra first." Allura said. "The last thing we want is to give them the impression that we have come to either force them to join the Empire or to vacate their home."

"Wait, we're _not _trying to get them to join the Empire?" Lance asked with a frown.

"Lotor has sent multiple envoys to get them to do so, and all have been refused." Allura said. "Clearly, they value their independence."

"They _are _a colony of deserters." Pidge observed. "Maybe they're just not wild about the whole Empire business, no matter who's in charge?"

"Pidge is right." Shiro said. "We have to keep in mind that these are Galra who have been living independently from the Empire for generations. We don't want to step on any toes."

"So if they don't follow the Empire, who _do _they follow?" Hunk asked.

"They elect their own leader, once ever ten deca-phoebs." Krolia stated. "I believe the current ruler should be the same as on my last visit, a half-Galra woman by the name of Linum."

Shiro's brows shot up at that. That was a pretty marked departure from what he knew of the Empire- not only did they elect their leader via combat, but those of mixed blood were usually viewed unfavorably. Even with Lotor on the throne, those feelings persisted. It was part of why some factions had broken away from the Empire upon his ascension in the first place.

Krolia caught his gaze, looking towards him with a nearly unreadable expression. "It was only under Zarkon's reign that the Galra became concerned with purity of the blood."

Shiro could only nod. It was true enough that there had been countless half-Galra in the Blade of Marmora, and he'd never heard a word against them. They had even embraced Keith, who at least physically looked as human as could be. It wasn't such a surprise that a colony that existed outside Zarkon's reign should have a similar attitude towards those of mixed blood.

"I'm opening a hailing frequency, princess." Coran said.

"Good." Allura nodded. "Let us hope they are willing to speak with us."

They didn't have to wait long before they got a response. Coran hastily patched it through, bringing it up on the main screen of the Castleship. The Galra woman who appeared onscreen had to be Linum, Shiro concluded. She was just as purple as any other Galra, her skin a fine coat of scales, but he'd never seen horns like that on a Galra before. They rose from her brow, rising above her head and then curling inwards in a spiral loop. A secondary pair of horns stuck out from either side of her head, though they were far less impressive. She had the standard yellow sclera he had come to associate with all Galra, but she also had vivid green pupils- although her right eye was permanently sealed shut, a vicious looking scar over it.

Curiously, she didn't wear any armor. It occurred to him that he hadn't actually seen any Galra without it- even low level civilians wore _some _form of armor.

"I am Linum, the current governor of Ignis." She stated, confirming Shiro's suspicions. "State your business."

Allura stepped forward. "I am Princess Allura, of the Voltron Coalition. We have come here because we have heard of the situation your home is in."

Linum's gaze flickered briefly towards Krolia, then back towards Allura. "From the new Emperor, I assume. Our people have no intention of joining the Empire, regardless of their new ruler's claims of changing their ways."

"I can assure you, that is not what we are here for." Allura told her. "We are simply here to help negotiate an agreement between your people and the Viridi."

Linum's expression didn't change. "We have no need of negotiators. This is a matter our people can resolve on our own."

"I am quite certain you can." Allura said. "Nevertheless, we wish to help."

Linum stared at Allura, unblinking, for a few seconds longer, before seemingly heaving a sigh. "Very well. We will permit your ship to land."

"Thank you." Allura said, bowing her head slightly.

The transmission cut off there, and Shiro could hear the paladins jointly release a held breath. For his part, he felt no small amount of tension wash out of his shoulders, turning towards Allura with a half-smile. "That went well."

"It certainly could have gone better." Allura said. "But I suppose we should have expected a somewhat frosty response, given our history with Lotor."

"Are you sure this is such a good idea?" Hunk asked. "I mean, she kind of made it sound like she really didn't want us here."

"No harm will come to you." Krolia said. "I have been to Ignis many times by Lotor's request. Governor Linum is not so unreasonable that she would view you as enemies simply because of your connection to the Empire."

"There you have it." Shiro said with a shrug. "Did they send us those landing coordinates, Coran?"

"That they did." Coran told him. "I'm putting them in the system now. At our current rate of speed, we should be there in about fifteen doboshes."

"Good." Allura said. "Maintain course."

"So what is this place like anyways?" Lance asked.

"Most of the moon is a desert environment." Krolia explained. "Over the past few centuries, the Galra who lived there have built oasis cities in various locations around the moon. Most of the population live in those, but there are a few others who choose to live in the desert."

Shiro frowned. Talk about the desert always made him think about Keith. He probably would have liked it here.

"Are there any toxins we should know about?" Allura inquired.

"None." Krolia said. "The atmosphere should be perfectly breathable, to both human and Altean alike. The Galra here haven't been terraforming the moon for centuries for nothing. It was once a far harsher environment."

"Oh good." Lance said. "Because let me tell you, I've been to planets where we can't take off our helmets, and it is _not _fun."

"Why would it be fun?" Krolia inquired, staring at Lance without a hint of sarcasm.

"That's not-" Lance began.

"Alright," Shiro cut in, "-let's try to stay on task. This will be the first impression these people have of the Voltron Coalition. We want to make sure it's a good one."

"So wait," Hunk began, "-we're not trying to make them join the Galra Empire, I get that. But are we trying to make them join the Voltron Coalition?"

"Yeah, they don't really seem like the _joining _type." Pidge said.

"We're not trying to make them do anything." Shiro said, feeling a slight twinge of exasperation. "We just want to establish good relations, that's all."

"Well in that case, have no fear." Lance said, placing a hand over his chest. "Because I'm something of an expert on _good relations_."

Twitching, Shiro felt his headache momentarily spike. "Lance, this is serious."

Not that Lance was _ever _serious, Shiro thought to himself. They had been at war for nearly two years now. He would have thought that he would have started to take things more seriously, but sometimes Lance still acted like this was all one big game to him. Sometimes it felt like losing Keith didn't even _matter _to him. It wasn't as if they had ever gotten along, and now that Keith was gone, he was permanently the red lion's paladin.

It had all just worked out for him, hadn't it?

Exhaling, Shiro banished the thought, internally scolding himself for even _thinking _that. He knew it wasn't true. Lance _did _care, and he certainly wasn't trying to take advantage of Keith's death. Nobody was.

Turning, Shiro fixed his attention on his controls and nothing else, even as the rest of the paladins continued to chatter behind him. He had to hold it together better than this. Keith had given his life to save them. As Voltron's leader, he had a duty to honor that sacrifice by living up to what he would have expected of him.

He could do better. He could _be _better. He knew he could.

So why did it sometimes feel like he couldn't?

* * *

"Very well. We will permit your ship to land."

With the transmission cut off, Linum rose to her feet. Turning sharply on her heel, she turned to her waiting messenger. She had summoned him when they had detected the Castle of Lions wormholing into their system, having received prior word that the paladins were on their way here.

She knew better than to doubt the Blade of Marmora's intelligence.

"Qui," Linum began, "-go and contact Cinque. I think her guests will be interested in hearing this."

Bowing his head, Qui hastily left. Alone in the transmission room, Linum turned on her heel, gazing out over the city that stretched out the window before her. She didn't like the idea of dragging her people into danger, but this could very well be the chance that they had been looking for. They would take down the mole and set things right, whatever the cost.

Bringing up a screen with the wave of her hand, Linum stared hard at the image displayed on it. It was hard to believe, but she had no reason to doubt the intelligence Kolivan had given her- not when it had come from the mouth of someone who would know best.

The black paladin was a fake.


	3. the fall of the black lion

Hello everyone, I'm back with the next chapter! In which I get to engage in one of my favorite activities... world building! But I promise that's not the only thing that happens in this chapter, so no worries if you're not as hyped by that sort of thing as I am. As always, thanks for reading, and until next update!

* * *

**ignis**

**chapter two**

**the fall of the black lion**

* * *

The capital city, Shiro had to admit, was grander than he had been expecting.

They got an excellent view of it as they landed the Castle. The first thing that caught his eye was what had to be the capital building- it rose high above all the other structures, and seemed to be the only building in the area that was actually made out of stone. It looked to be black at first glance, but the closer they drew to it, the more he realized it was actually a deep violet, fittingly enough. It must have been at least twenty or so stories high, spiraling into a sharp point at the very top. Here and there, he could make out pockets of greenery on what looked to be balconies jutting out of the structure.

It was far from the only green he could see. Despite the moon being one vast desert, the city itself was full of it, the streets lined with trees. Krolia had referred to the cities as an oasis, and he could see why- in addition to all the green, the city was built around a vast lake, gleaming a bright blue under the desert sun. The capital building sat to one end of it, while the other end was flanked by what almost looked to be some kind of amphitheater. Market stalls bordered either end of the lake on a raised platform, the kind that looked like they could be taken down quickly if needed. He was willing to bet flooding was an occasional issue, but one that they seemed to have handled.

Unlike the capital building, what he assumed were residences appeared to have been made out of clay brick. Single story homes seemed to be the most common, but here and there he could find ones that looked to have two or three stories. These followed the trend of the capital building, in that most appeared to have green roofs- though true to the fact that they were in space, not all of the roofs in question were _literally _green. Space plants, he'd found, came in all sorts of colors.

And just about everywhere he looked, there were people.

"Huh," Hunk let slip, "-not what I was expecting."

He couldn't exactly argue with that. They had visited dozens of civilian colonies within the Galra Empire since joining forces with Lotor, and while not all of them were completely devoid of interesting architecture or sometimes even beauty, it definitely wasn't the norm. So this... this was something else.

The Castle was too big to land within the city limits, so the coordinates they were given were on the outskirts. Even before they landed, he could make out what appeared to be some kind of reception party, with a pair of shuttles that he assumed were meant as transport waiting behind them.

Exchanging a glance with Allura, she merely gave him an uneasy shrug, her thoughts clearly on the same page as his. He wasn't wild about being so far away from the Castle, but he knew they could call their lions to them if they really needed to.

Hopefully, they wouldn't need to.

Once the Castle landed, he turned on his heel to look at the paladins. Everyone was on their feet, waiting to hear their orders. He looked towards Allura, inclining his head, to which she responded by doing the same. He might be the leader of Voltron, but she had more experience with diplomatic endeavors. This was a mission she was better suited to lead. As much as he hated to admit it, his unstable temper could sometimes make him a diplomatic risk. He'd managed to keep it in check for the most part, but the last thing he wanted to do was cause an incident because of these stupid headaches of his.

No. Better to let Allura handle this one.

Straightening her back, Allura switched to her most authoritative tone, the one that never failed to make the rest of the paladins snap to attention. "Let us go and greet our greeters. Coran, can I ask you to stay with the Castle?"

"Of course, princess." Coran said.

Allura gave him a brief smile, before turning back to the rest of the paladins. "As you know, this is a delicate situation. We will all need to be on our best behavior."

"That means no wandering off." Shiro chimed in.

Allura nodded in agreement. "Remember, our goal is to _reduce _tensions, not raise them. We want to work out an arrangement that is beneficial to both parties."

"Copy that." Lance said, his tone so light that Shiro couldn't help but wonder if he _actually _understood or not. "If it's about looking good, then old Lancey-Lance is _all _over it."

"What are you going to do, flirt with the Viridi extremists until they agree to stop being dicks?" Pidge cracked.

"Hey, it could work." Lance shot back. "I'll have you know that the ladies love me."

Shiro had to bite down on his tongue to keep himself from saying anything. Maybe Lance just didn't understand how potentially serious this situation was just yet. He was sure that once they started discussions, he would. If not... well, then maybe he'd have a word with him.

"There will be no flirting with _anyone_." Allura cut in, thankfully before Shiro lost his patience. "Is that understood?"

Properly chided, Lance just meekly nodded. It didn't stop him from making a face at Pidge when she nudged him with her elbow, so he wasn't too hung up on his scolding. Allura was pretty good at that.

He used to be pretty good at that too, but somewhere between being captured by the Galra for a second time, the headaches, and losing Keith, he seemed to have completely lost the trick of it. It bothered him more than he was willing to admit- he didn't want to think that his very personality was being reshaped by his trauma, but he couldn't deny that was what appeared to be happening. He remembered shrugging off all of Adam's attempts to get him to speak with a therapist about his condition back on Earth, and now he couldn't help but wish for one.

It was funny how life worked sometimes.

Too bad nobody was laughing.

* * *

It was just a short ride down to the surface of the planet, where their greeting committee was already waiting. Despite Krolia's assurances that there wouldn't be any problems, he couldn't help but feel tense the entire time. These people obviously weren't fans of the Empire, and practically everyone knew at this point that the Voltron Coalition had been working together with Lotor's Galra Empire for nearly a year now. He couldn't help _but _be wary.

Thankfully, his worries proved to be for naught. The greeting committee was just that- greeters. Compared to the frosty reception they had gotten from Linum, the quartet of Galra sent to greet them were much more welcoming, even to Krolia. In short order, they were loaded into the transports, and were on their way into the city proper.

The towering building _was _the capital building, just like he'd thought. The Galra man driving the transport informed them that the name of the city was _Rida_, a word from Old Galran that roughly translated into _unity_. There were five other cities of note on the moon, plus scattered settlements here and there, but for their purposes of their visit, they would spend most of their time here.

Shiro listened with one ear to the information being given, looking out the windows as they made their way into the capital. Up close, it was even more of a sight to behold. He hadn't noticed it from the air, but although most of the residences were the same uniform sandy color, the doors were all brightly painted. A few buildings had colored poles stuck outside, which he was informed meant that they were actually _shops_, and not residences. The colored poles served in lieu of signboards.

And everywhere they went, there were people.

To his surprise, they weren't all Galra. Some of them were clearly just mixed, but others appeared to be completely different species. When he asked about them, their driver gave a somewhat cagey answer that they had come here to escape the Empire, but he got the feeling that there was more to it than that.

It didn't take that long for them to arrive at the capital building- it had probably only been around fifteen minutes since they had left the Castle of Lions. The two shuttles came to a stop in front of a grand staircase that lead up to the building proper, where another reception party was waiting to greet them.

Linum stood at the head of this one.

She was tall, taller than he had expected. Height-wise, she was probably shorter than Antok, who still remained among the taller Galra he'd seen, but her horns put her over the edge. She had a lithe frame, with legs that reminded him of the fauns from ancient Roman mythos, easily visible between the triple gaps in her long, almost silk-like skirt. They were covered in a fine coating of violet fur, the only trace of hair on her otherwise hairless body. While she wasn't wearing armor, she _was _still armed, a wicked looking pair of daggers hanging from either side of what was otherwise an ornamental belt. On her wrists, she wore two golden gauntlets, so elaborately detailed that he was almost positive they were indicators of her rank- either that, or she just liked fancy accessories.

To say that she was imposing was _definitely _an understatement.

She was flanked on either side by a trio of bodyguards, all Galra, though not all full-blooded. Behind them were a pair of attendants, each trying to peek past the guards to get a better look. They caught him looking and instantly froze, trying to pretend they hadn't been doing anything of the kind.

"Paladins," Linum's voice boomed out across the steps, commanding their full attention in a way that reminded him of both Allura and Lotor, "-we welcome you to the city of Rida."

"Oh, so _now _she wants to act all friendly." Lance muttered underneath his breath.

Hunk quickly hushed him, and thankfully, none of their attendants seemed to notice. Shiro shot him a look that the blue paladin seemingly failed to notice, or had otherwise just decided to ignore.

"Governor Linum," Allura strode forward, "-I am Princess Allura, a paladin of Voltron. We thank you for welcoming us here today, especially given the short notice."

"We wish we could greet you under better circumstances." Linum said. "Come. We have much to discuss."

She turned on her heel, heading inside the capital. Taking that as their invitation, they began their hike up the stairs. The Galra that had greeted them remained with the shuttles, he noticed, glancing back at them out of the corner of his eyes. They were chatting amongst themselves, and once he was certain they didn't seem to be acting suspiciously, he looked away.

"Stairs," Hunk grumbled, half to himself, "-why does it always have to be _stairs_?"

"It's likely for flood control." Allura remarked. "Quite sensible, if you ask me."

"I wonder if the lake is man made." Pidge mused, glancing over her shoulder towards it. "Do you think I could ask?"

"Don't see why not." Lance shrugged. "They seem friendly enough. You know, their leader aside."

"That leader is the one we want to make the good impression on." Shiro reminded him. "Don't forget that."

"I know." Lance said. "You don't have to remind me."

"I just want us to stay on task." Shiro said quickly, wondering if he'd said that too harshly. He didn't _think _he had, but well... sometimes what he thought didn't actually match up to the reality.

"She's probably just tense because of the whole _possible mass exile_ situation." Hunk said. "I mean, who wouldn't be?"

"No, she's always like this." Krolia chimed in.

Shiro almost jumped at the sound of her voice. Honestly, she was so quiet that he'd nearly forgotten she was there. She had her gaze fixed straight ahead, not looking any of them as she ascended the stairs.

"Oh yeah, you've been here before, right?" Hunk asked. "So, uh... any tips you can give us?"

"Don't say _vrepit sa_." Krolia remarked- and for a split second, he swore he saw the edge of her lip curl up in a smile.

"Got it. No _vrepit sa_." Hunk said, giving the lieutenant a firm nod of his head.

"Hey, who knows?" Pidge shrugged, an almost impish grin on her face. "Maybe these Galra aren't as big into _palen-bol_ as Dayak is."

At the mention of Lotor's governess, Hunk turned several shades paler. "Oh man, I hope not. I think she _still _wants to fight me to the death for leaving early. I'm telling you, Galra education is _intense_."

"I still can't believe Lotor's nanny wants to beat you up." Lance said.

"Not beat me up." Hunk corrected. "Fight me to the death. There's a big difference between the two."

"Paladins," Allura lightly interjected, "-focus."

The paladins jerked to attention, and not a moment too soon, since they had arrived at the top of the steps. Linum and her party were waiting for them in front of the entrance to the capital, though this time, the pair of attendants stood out in front of the bodyguards. Now that he was closer, he realized that they must have been twins- and were also a little younger than he'd first thought, maybe around Hunk and Lance's age.

They were the same age now as Keith had been when he'd died, he thought with a pang. Keith had never even made it to twenty.

(_He _was the one who was supposed to die young, not Keith. It just didn't seem _fair_.)

"Please," the twins said in perfect unison, "-this way."

Taking the lead of the group alongside Allura, Shiro lead the paladins inside. The exterior gave way to the space equivalent of a lobby, with a fountain depicting a battle scene as the central focus point. He cocked a brow at it, reminding himself that these were still Galra they were dealing with, even if they'd distanced themselves by generations from the Empire.

Linum caught his gaze. Motioning towards the fountain, she held her head high. "The first conquest of Brodar the First. We may no longer be part of the Empire, but we still honor the history of our ancestors, before said history was twisted for Zarkon's use."

Shiro just nodded. He already knew that for large portions of their history, the Galra had been conquerors, but not much else. He wasn't about to pass judgement on them without knowing their full history.

From there, Linum lead them up yet another set of stairs. Several flights later, they came out onto a small plateau, with a grand looking door set to the back of it. Although there were more stairs leading upwards in the other direction, Linum guided them through the door instead. He could just make out Hunk's sigh of relief, apparently grateful to (hopefully) be done with the stairs once and for all.

The door lead into an office, a grand desk set back against a huge window with a view that overlooked the city. He had to admit, it was pretty impressive.

Crossing the room, Linum sat down at the desk. Before they could even ask what it was she wanted them to do, the guards emerged, carrying six chairs, placing them on the other side of the desk. Exchanging a glance with Allura, the princess merely shrugged, taking one of the centermost chairs. He sat down next to her, with Pidge, Hunk, and Lance taking the other seats. Krolia, it seemed, preferred to remain standing, a preference that was quickly noted. The chair that had been set out for her quickly vanished, returned back to wherever it had been taken from.

"So," Linum began without any preamble, "-Lotor sends us the paladins."

Shiro frowned slightly at the statement, but he couldn't exactly deny it. He knew that even now, there were still some factions within the Coalition who were still uneasy with their alliance with the Galra Empire. They felt that they had sold themselves out to the very Empire they had been fighting for so long, though most weren't willing to voice it. It didn't surprise him that Ignis' governor might share those same sentiments.

Somehow it didn't surprise him that she'd be bolder about it either.

"We understand your people have no interest in joining the Galra Empire, but I can assure you, that is _not _what brings us here." Allura said firmly. "We only wish to help."

Linum narrowed her eyes. "And how do you intend to _help_, princess?"

"We would like to join the negotiations." Allura stated.

Linum merely hummed, leaning back in her chair, crossing one leg over the other. "Do the paladins of Voltron think so little of us that they do not think we can work out a solution for ourselves?"

"I can assure you, that is not the case." Allura quickly said, looking alarmed at the suggestion. "We are quite certain that you can. Only... given the bigger picture, it may be wise to bring as swift a conclusion to this situation as possible."

Linum seemed to consider this. "You make a fair point. We are not so isolated out here that we do not keep up with the affairs of the day. We are well aware that the new Emperor struggles to keep his subjects in line."

_Struggle_. None of them had been willing to admit as much out loud, but it was true that Lotor was struggling. Things might be far less chaotic than they had been right after his ascension to the throne, but it didn't change the fact that they were still dealing with threats of succession from the Empire, and commanders who were once loyal to his father turning into warlords, each looking for their own piece of the pie.

It was _exactly _why this situation needed to end well.

"Tell me, princess," Linum began, "-what would your ideal solution for this situation be?"

"I would allow the Viridi to construct a colony here." Allura said simply. "One that they would govern by themselves, but would work in tandem with the existing populace to ensure that any policies they established would be good for all who live here."

"So you do not wish to chase us from our homes?" Linum asked.

"No." Allura said firmly. "I speak for the Voltron Coalition as a whole when I say that I have no qualms about the continued existence of this colony."

Shiro's gaze flickered towards her, unable to help but feel a little doubtful of her claim. He didn't doubt that there were plenty of people within the Coalition who would be sympathetic to the Viridi extremists. No matter how peaceful the people of Ignis were, they were still Galra, and there would always be people who reviled them for that fact alone.

But somehow, he suspected Linum already knew that.

Linum hummed, a thoughtful expression in her good eye. "You say that, but by referring to us as a colony, you do not seem as if you respect our sovereignty."

Allura blinked, as if she hadn't expected that. "I- no. I can assure you, governor, that is _not _the case."

Linum simply huffed, almost in amusement. "I am certain that a colony is all the current Emperor wishes us to be. But we are a sovereign people, and this is our home. We have no interest in bowing our heads, not to the Galra Empire, not to the extremists who seek to rob us of our homes, and not to the Voltron Coalition."

"If that is clear," Linum continued, "-then I believe we can _consider _including you in our negotiations."

"That is all we ask." Allura said.

"Then the matter is settled." Linum nodded, rising to her feet. "You are welcome to stay here, if you wish it. We would see to it that you and your paladins are treated well."

"That would depend upon the wishes of the paladins." Allura stated, glancing to either side of her, but mostly towards him.

Shiro shrugged. "I don't see why not."

It would give them more of a chance to get a feel for the place, than if they just cooped themselves up inside the Castle. If they were going to work together with these people, then they needed to know a little more about them than just what they had been told by Lotor.

"Then it is settled." Allura nodded.

"Excellent." Linum said, motioning towards the twin attendants, who jumped slightly as attention was turned back towards them. "Ui and Yi can show you to where you will be staying."

"As for you, lieutenant," Linum began, finally acknowledging Krolia for the first time, "-I suppose the usual room would suffice?"

"It would." Krolia merely inclined her head.

"If it is not too much trouble, we would like to return to the Castle first." Allura said. "I wish to inform Coran of our arrangements, and I believe the paladins would care to collect some of their belongings."

A faint smile curled at the edge of his lip as he watched Pidge, Hunk, and Lance nod eagerly at Allura's statement. While their paladin armor wasn't uncomfortable, it wasn't something they exactly wanted to live in- or _sleep _in, for that matter. He had to admit, a change of clothes _would _be nice.

"Of course." Linum agreed. "In that case, they can guide you back to the shuttles for now."

Bowing her head, Allura rose to her feet. "Thank you for your generosity."

"You will find more of it here than you will on Viridi." Linum noted, her nose crinkling slightly in distaste, before she shook her head. "But I say too much. Ui, Yi. Take the paladins to the shuttles. I can escort the lieutenant myself."

His gaze darted over towards Krolia. There seemed to be some familiarity there, but he guessed it shouldn't come as much of a surprise- from the sound of it, Lotor _had _been using her as something of an envoy. She must have made multiple visits in the past already.

He had to wonder what Lotor's goal was, sending her here with them. He trusted the prince's desire for peace, but he wasn't so naive to believe that he didn't have ambitions of his own, separate from those of the Coalition's.

Well, whatever they were, they weren't any of his concern right now. He was certain Lotor wouldn't risk jeopardizing such important negotiations anyways. He was too smart for that. No, if he had any goal here, it wasn't to get in their way. The exact opposite was far more likely.

If Lotor wanted anything, it was to appeal to Ignis' ruling powers. Bringing a people who had been in rebellion for ten thousand years into line would bring him respect within the Empire, so he was probably using this as a chance to show just how much the Empire had changed underneath his rulership. It was a strategy that might actually work- if it weren't for the person in command.

Somehow he doubted that Linum had _any _intention of bending to Lotor, no matter how many attempts he made to appeal to her.

* * *

"You're certain you don't want to come with us?"

"As much as I'd love to, someone has to stay and watch the Castle." Coran gave Allura a remorseful shake of his head. "But I'll be just a call away if you need me!"

Allura frowned. "I just don't like the idea of leaving you here by yourself."

"Oh, I'll be fine." Coran assured her. "You five go and enjoy yourselves."

"We're not exactly here on vacation, Coran." Shiro remarked.

"Shiro's right." Allura said. "This is serious diplomatic business."

"Fair enough." Coran said. "Just thought this might be a good chance to let the young ones run around a bit, have some fun. It feels like it's been awhile."

"Maybe once the negotiations are over." Shiro said. "It _would _be nice to relax a little."

He had to admit- it would be. It wasn't as if they _never _had the time to relax, but things had been different after Naxzela. It wasn't just the fact that they had lost one of their own, but it was also because circumstances had changed so drastically, so quickly. Now they were working with the Galra Empire in an attempt to bring lasting peace to the universe, and that meant they had new responsibilities, and a lot less time to fool around.

No one ever really complained about it, but... well, Coran was right. It _would _be nice to give those three something of a break, even if it was only just for a few days. He could probably use one himself, though he doubted he'd take it. The idea of him taking a break while there was still so much work to be done just didn't sit right with him.

Keith had _died _for this chance. He owed it to him to work as hard as possible to ensure everything came to fruition.

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to keep it in mind." Allura said. "Still, they're taking a bit long, don't you think?"

Shiro could only laugh. "None of them are exactly quick packers."

Upon returning to the Castle, they had split up, each heading to their own individual rooms. They had standing orders to meet up on the bridge, but by the time Allura got here, he was still the only one there, save for Coran, who'd never left. If he knew those three- and he did- then he knew Lance would spend at least a solid ten minutes debating which of his skin care products he needed to take, and Hunk would spend just as much time nervously checking and rechecking his bag just in case he'd forgotten something, even though he never did.

And Pidge? Pidge would be trying to cram as much as physically possible into one bag.

He, on the other hand, had barely been in his room for longer than a few seconds, just long enough for him to grab a change of clothes and his toothbrush. He'd always been good at packing light. Adam would say what he was _really _good at was actually forgetting things, but Adam wasn't here to criticize him right now, so it didn't matter.

Allura just huffed, crossing her arms. "I just don't want to make a bad impression."

"She really got to you, huh?" Shiro asked.

Allura's lips twisted into a frown. "I must admit, I somewhat underestimated her. It won't happen again."

"I'm sure it won't." Shiro said. "She kind of reminds me of you, actually."

"Which is exactly why I am afraid we might not be able to get along." Allura confessed. "Though I suppose that's not _exactly _what we are here for."

"Maybe you could ask Krolia for some tips?" Shiro suggested.

Allura's frown deepened, clearly not keen on the idea. But before she could say anything, the Castle's alarms suddenly began to blare. Instantly switching gears, anything they might have wanted to say was forgotten as they each rushed to their respective stations. Elsewhere, the rest of the paladins would drop what they were doing to scramble to the bridge. They had all come to learn just how important the alarms were.

"We're detecting a fleet of Galra ships entering the system!" Coran cried.

"Bring it up on screen." Allura instructed.

Several Galra cruisers appeared onscreen, alongside details regarding their speed and proximity. Shiro narrowed his eyes, giving both a quick glance, already making the calculations in his head. If they kept their current course and rate of speed, they would be here in less than ten minutes.

"_Please _tell me those are friendly ships." Hunk said, the first paladin to make it to the bridge.

"I don't know, Hunk, they don't look all that friendly to me." Lance remarked, hurrying in behind him. He all but leapt into his chair- the one for the blue paladin, not the red. He'd stopped using that one after Keith's death.

No one had complained.

"How can you tell?" Pidge asked, making it to the bridge last. "They all look the same."

"Instinct, Pidge." Lance said. "You do this job long enough, and you start to pick things up."

"Unfortunately, Lance is right." Allura said. "They're not sending any of the friendly signals that we've established with Lotor."

"Let me check to see if I can get a better read on them." Pidge said, hastily typing away. "I may be able to figure out who they belong to."

Shiro waited, watching Pidge work with no small degree of anxiety. If these were enemy ships, then every second counted.

"Okay, I've got it." Pidge said. "It looks like these ships belong to Gnov's fleet."

"Aw man, not _Gnov_." Hunk groaned. "I thought we ditched her!"

Shiro could only huff in agreement. The last time they had a run in with Gnov and her forces, they'd had a tough time getting out of the trap that she'd laid for them. Thanks to Pidge's quick thinking, they had been able to turn it against her at the last possible second, trapping her and the bulk of her forces in it instead while they wormholed to safety.

But if these really _were _Gnov's ships, then obviously, she hadn't been as trapped as they'd thought.

"They must be here to escalate the situation." Allura said. "We cannot let them."

Shiro nodded, turning back to face the paladins. "Allura's right. We need to form Voltron and take them out before they can do any damage."

"Coran, radio Linum and inform her that there's been a change of plans." Allura instructed.

"Copy that, Princess." Coran said, a touch of worry to his voice. "Stay safe out there."

"We will."

* * *

The battle itself hadn't proved to be much.

He'd been wary and alert for any signs of a possible trap the entire time, but there had been nothing. Given Gnov's usual tactics, it left him with an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach, one that he couldn't manage to shake even after the last of the cruisers was destroyed. What if there was something they had missed? Or even worse, what if this whole thing had just been a diversion?

"I'm sure if it was, Coran would have notified us." Allura said, after he gave voice to his doubts.

"Maybe we trapped Gnov like we thought, and these are just what remains of her forces?" Hunk suggested.

"Yeah, for all we know they might not even be acting under her orders." Lance said. "I say we don't worry about it."

Shiro bit back a comment that Lance never seemed to worry about anything, and instead tried to take what he was being told to heart. He didn't doubt Gnov would escape the trap she'd set at _some _point, but that probably wouldn't happen for awhile yet. Maybe Hunk was right, and these were just the last few ships under her command that were free, out looking for a little revenge.

It hadn't amounted to much, but well... _victory or death_ was the motto of the Galra.

He still found himself taking up the rear of the formation, just in case. Maybe he _was _just being needlessly paranoid, but it never hurt to be cautious.

"So now what?" Pidge asked.

"Now we return to Ignis, and see if our escort stayed behind." Allura said. "I would like to speak with Linum directly about the attack, but the four of you can go ahead to the lodging, if you desire. I cannot imagine that she will need all of us to debrief."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Lance said. "I wonder where exactly we'll be staying? In the capital building?"

"Oh, or maybe they have their own hotel!" Hunk said. "Honestly, you'd think there'd be more space hotels."

"I mean, the universe _has _been kind of at war for like, ten thousand years." Pidge pointed out. "That's not exactly conducive to tourism."

In spite of himself, Shiro chuckled. While in his worst moments, the banter between the paladins could yank at his last nerve, most of the time he enjoyed it. After Keith's death, he'd been worried that the bond they had all forged would suffer as a result, but thankfully the paladins all proved more resilient than that. None of them wanted to see Keith's sacrifice go to waste.

Unless they never cared about Keith at all, the darker part of him whispered.

He shook the thought off, taking in a deep breath. He knew that wasn't true. They had all mourned Keith's loss in their own way. Thinking like that did a disservice not only to the paladins, but also to Keith.

Exhaling, Shiro fixed his attention up ahead. They were drawing closer to Ignis, and so far, everything seemed to be exactly the way they had left it. Maybe this hadn't been a diversion after all, and he'd been worried for nothing. It wouldn't exactly be the first time.

"-contact Coran- make sure- okay."

Shiro blinked, his brows knitting together. Had they hit some kind of patch of interference? Allura's last transmission had been so filled with static that he had only been able to make out every other word.

"Everything okay, Allura?" Shiro asked, tinkering with the frequencies to see if the static would clear up any. "You're breaking up."

Far from getting any better, the static only managed to get worse. It wasn't only Allura- all the other paladins seemed to be suffering from the same static, although judging from the few snippets of conversation that _did _get through, it didn't sound like this was a problem for anyone else. It was just him.

Huh. Maybe he'd hit something in that last battle. He'd have Coran take a look at it once they got back to the Castle.

Just as he thought that, communications were cut off completely. Huffing, Shiro attempted to manually reconnect them, but the effort was in vain. Whatever kind of malfunction this was, it was clearly beyond his ability to fix. He'd just have to leave it to Coran.

It was only when his lion began listing slightly to the left, that he truly began to worry.

Jostling with the controls, Shiro frowned. They didn't seem to be responding like he wanted them to, as if the black lion was resisting his commands. The last time this had happened was the time they had fought Zarkon- and a shudder ran down the length of his spine at that recollection. He still wasn't sure what had happened to him after that fight, but he was positive that Zarkon was dead now. Lotor had killed him.

So why was the black lion acting like it wasn't listening to him?

"Black," Shiro began, trying not to sound _too _anxious, "-what's going on?"

His lion didn't respond, and it was with a start that he realized he couldn't feel the black lion at all. "Black?"

Then, all at once, the black lion began to plummet. Looking frantically up towards the other paladins, Shiro realized that none of them had even noticed what was happening. He was too far behind them, and they were too used to his after battle silence over the coms. They probably thought everything was going as usual.

Grunting, Shiro fought to regain control of the black lion, but it was no use. With a violent jerk, he was thrown from his seat, his head impacting painfully with the floor. His helmet protected him, but not enough- he could still feel a dull throb forming in the back of his head that had nothing to do with his usual headaches.

Groaning, he tried to push himself up, only to be tossed violently again- and this time, he wasn't so lucky. His head hit the edge of a console, black spots forming in his vision. Fighting to stay awake, Shiro reached out a hand, trying to get a grip on his seat- but it slipped away.

The last thing he saw before completely losing consciousness was the desert floor, approaching fast- and then, nothing.


	4. the return of the dead

Well that was a somewhat longer hiatus than originally planned, but the good news is that my shoulder is feeling much better now! It was pretty painful before, so that's a huge relief. Anyways, onto the chapter! It's a long awaited one, I am sure. We finally get to see a certain someone again, but of course, it's not all just flowers and roses.

As always, thanks for reading! I'll see you next update! Unless I strain my shoulder again and end up taking forever to update again- but let's hope not.

* * *

**ignis**

**chapter three**

**the return of the dead**

* * *

Groaning, Shiro's eyelids fluttered. There _was _a dull pain in the back of his head, different from his usual migraines, but for a few seconds, he couldn't figure out why. What-?

It all came back in a rush, his eyes snapping wide open. That's right- they'd been on a diplomatic mission for Lotor when Gnov's forces had attacked, and then-

...and then the black lion had stopped responding.

He sat up with a violent jerk, only to fall right back over, unbalanced. He groaned, trying to push himself up more slowly this time, only to realize two things at once. The first was that he was being restrained, and the second, more concerning thing, was that his prosthetic was missing.

Trying to steady himself, he successfully forced himself up into a sitting position. His left arm was hooked to the back of his paladin armor, allowing him extremely limited use of it. Glancing down at his right arm, he winced, finding that it ended in a stump where his prosthetic would have normally began. He'd been largely stripped of his armor- the only thing that remained was the belt his wrist was hooked to. There was no sign of his helmet, nor anything he could use to contact the other paladins- or his missing prosthetic, for that matter. In fact, there wasn't much of anything- just a dank, empty room, kept lit by only a single light.

Even worse- he still couldn't sense the black lion.

Narrowing his eyes, Shiro stumbled to his feet, using the wall to help balance himself. He had to figure out where he was, and what had happened to the black lion. He could only hope that the rest of the paladins were safe, and were already looking for him. He was pretty sure they would notice the black lion going missing sooner, rather than later.

_If _they were all safe, that was.

Taking a deep breath, Shiro tried to steady his thoughts. It was easier than it usually was, he found to his surprise. Typically, his constant migraines got in the way- but other than a dull pain in the back of his head from where he'd hit it, his head barely even hurt.

Well, at least _one _thing was going right for him today.

Searching the room for anything that might help him, he only reconfirmed what he had concluded earlier- that it was completely empty. But at the very least, his only restraint was the one on his arm, leaving him otherwise free to move around. Someone would have to come check on him eventually, and when they did, maybe he could take them by surprise and overpower them. He didn't know how far he could get with just one arm, but he was willing to press his luck if it gave him even the slightest of chances.

With that in mind, Shiro made his way towards the door. Pressing his ear against it, he listened for any indication that anyone was outside, but either the door was too thick to hear anything through, or there was no one there, because he heard nothing. Sighing, he took a step back, prepared to wait it out, however long it took. He'd already been captured by the Galra twice now- three times, if you counted the brief stint in which he'd been held captive by Sendak- and he wasn't looking to add another occasion to that list.

At least, he was assuming that he was being held captive to the Galra. The only other option was the Viridi, and somehow he didn't think that kidnapping a paladin of Voltron would exactly work in their favor when it came to negotiations. Allura wasn't exactly known for bargaining with kidnappers.

He didn't have to wait long, thankfully. As soon as the door began to open, Shiro braced himself, ready to lunge at whoever was there- but instead ended up stopping dead in his tracks, his eyes blown wide at the sight before them.

They were Galra, alright- but they were also a Blade.

"So you're awake."

The sound of their voice, filtered through their mask, startled him back into awareness. He tensed, realizing that he had lost his chance to escape. The Blade wasn't bulky like some other Galra, but they were tall, easily towering over him. Without the element of surprise, he wouldn't be able to take them down, not with one hand tied behind his back and the other missing. He would just have to bide his time and wait for another chance.

And maybe while he was at it, he could get some answers.

This was the first Blade he'd seen in nearly a year- and they were holding him captive. He hated to admit it, but maybe Lotor had been right. Maybe the Blade _had _ceased to be their allies. Maybe this whole situation on Ignis had been nothing more than one big trap, meant to ensnare him and the other paladins.

He couldn't let that happen.

"Who are you?" Shiro demanded. "What have you done with the black lion?"

"The black lion is safe." The Blade said simply. "You are to come with me."

"And if I refuse?" Shiro asked, not missing the way they refused to give their name. He couldn't tell if they'd met before or not- with their masks on, all the Blades kind of looked the same.

"Then I take you by force." The Blade said simply. "But that is for you to decide."

Shiro narrowed his eyes. "Fine."

Better he go under his own power, rather than be knocked unconscious and dragged there. At least this way he'd have a chance to get a lay of the land. Maybe he could even figure out where _here _was. The last thing he remembered was the black lion plummeting towards the desert, but there was _a lot_ of desert on Ignis, so that didn't exactly narrow things down.

If they were even still _on _Ignis.

He couldn't tell under their mask, but he could have sworn the Blade smiled. With a gesture of their hand, they motioned for him to take the lead- which he did, after some hesitation. He didn't like showing his back to someone who was probably an enemy, even if they _had _once been allies not so long ago.

But if they wanted him dead, they would have killed him already.

The hallways he was lead through were just as dark and dank as the cell he'd been in- a total contrast from how bright and open Ignis' capital city had been. He thought about the other paladins once again, a knot of uncertainty forming in the pit of his stomach. Were they safe? Were they in danger? Had this all just been one big trap, or was the situation with the Viridi real, and the Blade had merely used it as an opportunity to accomplish their own ends.

Kolivan was a shrewd man, so he couldn't put anything past him. But why betray them? He thought they'd had the same goal- to put an end to Zarkon's reign, and they'd done just that. Sure, they were working _with _the Galra Empire now, but that was for the sake of bringing peace- something the Blade of Marmora wanted too.

Then again, maybe he was jumping to conclusions too quickly. Maybe there was still an explanation for all of this that _didn't _involve the Blade turning against them. Sure, this all looked bad- but maybe they had good reason for their actions.

Or maybe not. He had to admit, given his current circumstances, he was a little skeptical. However they had done it, it seemed clear that the Blade had abducted him and were currently holding him prisoner, even going so far as to strip him of his prosthetic and shield his mind from the black lion somehow. That... wasn't exactly encouraging, to say the least.

"Where are you taking me?" Shiro asked- to no avail. The Blade didn't respond, or even look back in his direction. It was almost like they were acting as if he didn't exist.

It was unnerving.

Finally, they came to a halt just outside a door. Turning back to face him, they stepped aside, motioning towards it. "In there."

Shiro frowned, but complied, taking a few steps forward. The door automatically slid open, flooding the narrow hallway with light. He had to shut his eyes against the sudden assault of brightness, his eyes having since adjusted to the darkness of where he'd been before. Blinking a few times, his vision quickly refocused, leaving him to realize that he'd been led to some kind of hangar.

Unlike the cell he'd been kept in, it wasn't empty. The black lion loomed overhead, but even this close to his lion, he still couldn't feel it. It reminded him of when Keith had been serving as the black lion's paladin, right after he'd been rescued from the Galra for the second time. He hadn't been able to hear it then either. It wasn't until the paladins had been forced into a corner that he'd managed to reestablish his bond with the black lion. There hadn't been any problems connecting since then.

No, that wasn't true. There was the time on Olkarion, during the virus attack. But he must have connected with his lion, because they'd still won. He just didn't remember it, that was all.

(Was it?)

The Blade who had been escorting him shoved him roughly inside. He stumbled, off balance without his prosthetic, just barley managing to stay on his feet. Whirling around to face them, he watched instead as the door closed behind him, leaving him alone in the hangar with the eerily silent black lion.

Or maybe not.

A dark figure stirred by one of the lion's paws, another masked Blade stepping out from the lion's shadow. This one was smaller than the one who had led him here. In fact, they might even be shorter than he was- a thought that brought with it a pang of familiarity. He quickly suppressed it, however- whoever this Blade was, it wasn't Keith.

Keith was dead.

(Even if they folded their arms in exactly the same way Keith did.)

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you now."

Though distorted by the mask, he could still tell how cold and unfeeling the Blade's tone was. He considered himself a brave man, but it still sent a small shiver down his spine. It wasn't an empty threat- if he didn't give this Blade the response they wanted, they probably _would _kill him.

So much for good reasons, he couldn't help but think.

"I don't understand." Shiro said. "I thought we were allies."

The Blade tilted their head, watching them from behind their mask. "The Blade of Marmora still considers itself allies of the Voltron Coalition."

Shiro narrowed his eyes, finding that hard to believe. "Stealing the black lion and kidnapping its paladin doesn't exactly seem like the act of an _ally_."

"You," the Blade hissed, "-are _not _the black lion's paladin."

Shiro flinched, momentarily taken back by the sheer amount of anger rolling off the Blade. Even without being able to see their expression, he could read it on their body- it was just as transparent as their statement was nonsensical.

He _was _the black lion's paladin. There was no one else.

Not anymore, at least.

"Alright," Shiro said, deciding to rethink his approach, since that _clearly _hadn't been the right one, "-then if I'm not the black lion's paladin, who am I?"

"You know what you are." The Blade said. "We may have cut your connection to the witch, but-"

"Wait." Shiro said, hastily cutting them off, his brows furrowing together. "What do you mean? What connection?"

He didn't have to ask who the witch was. There was only ever one person referred to as that- Zarkon's witch, the high priestess of the Galra Empire. _Haggar_. She had been eerily silent ever since her attempts to seize the throne for Sendak- and consequently, herself- had failed. They hadn't seen even a single druid since Lotor had taken the throne. They all agreed that she had to be planning something, they just couldn't figure out what.

Thinking about the witch still made his stomach turn. She'd done awful things to him, sure- but as far as he knew, he didn't have any connection to her, other than the arm that she had crafted for him. But in spite of its absence, he didn't think that was what this Blade meant. Besides, Pidge had checked that arm, and then Coran had checked it again- there was nothing wrong with it, nothing that could have left them vulnerable to the Galra Empire in any way. It was just a prosthetic.

The Blade took a few steps forward, almost as if they were going to charge him- before they stopped just as abruptly, staring at him instead. "How can you not know what connection? If you're playing dumb-"

"I swear to you, I'm not." Shiro said firmly- but didn't fail to note how strange a turn of phrase _playing dumb_ was for a Blade. He hadn't heard it from a Galra before.

The Blade simply continued to stare at him, almost like they'd been frozen in place. Then finally, they sucked in a long breath, and muttered something to themselves. Unfortunately for them, they weren't being quite as quiet as they thought they were.

"Shit," the Blade mumbled, that single word alone causing Shiro's brows to shoot up past his hairline, "-Shiro was right. He doesn't know."

Shiro stared at the Blade, dumbfounded. What did he mean, _Shiro _was right? Last he checked, _he _was Shiro. What was it that he didn't know? And why was this Blade talking about him like he was a separate person from well... _himself_?

And the way he was talking, the phrases he used... he felt something in his heart stir, more like a longing wish for it to be true than actual hope. He didn't dare to go that far.

It wasn't possible. Keith was dead. They hadn't seen the body, but no one could have survived that.

He was _dead_. He had to be.

And yet he still took a step forward, a hesitant look in his eyes. He didn't know if he wanted to be wrong or right about this, the situation too bizarre for him to come up with a clear answer.

"...Keith?"

The Blade stilled, and for a moment there was nothing but silence in the hangar, the air heavy and oppressive with it, almost as if it were a living thing.

Then they reached up, touching the side of their mask. It melted away, but instead of revealing familiar features, it revealed a deeply scarred face, skin a discolored mixture of peach and purple, eyes a sickly shade of pale yellow, only a single discolored pupil staring back at him from the left, and a shock of white hair offset by even more purple curling around his shoulders.

But it was also unmistakably Keith.

Shiro took a step forward, momentarily forgetting everything else, too wrapped up in the euphoria of seeing his brother alive, if not necessarily whole. All he wanted to do was take him into his arms, embrace him, to make sure he was really _real_, and not just an illusion created by head trauma.

"_Keith_-"

"Don't." Keith narrowed his mismatched eyes, glowering at him with a ferocity he'd seen before, but had never had turned on him. "Don't you _dare_."

He stopped in his tracks, more confused than anything else. He thought Keith would have been happy to be reunited after so long.

It was only then that he remembered exactly how it was that he had gotten here, and what position he was in. He remembered how Keith had spoken to him when he'd entered the hangar, coldly asking if he had a reason as to why he shouldn't kill him on the spot. And he realized that the reason the black lion had ceased responding to him was because it had started responding to another- that Keith had called it here, forced it to crash.

And had then promptly taken him prisoner.

"I don't understand." Shiro said, more hurt than before. It was one thing if it was the Blade. It was another if it was Keith. "Keith, I-"

"Don't say another word." Keith snarled. "Just don't. I don't want to talk to you."

Shiro opened his mouth to say something nevertheless, only to quickly shut it after Keith's expression hardened. It wasn't the scars that rendered his brother nearly unrecognizable- it was the way he looked at him. There was no fondness in that gaze, no affection- just revulsion. _Hatred_, almost.

Almost.

He didn't understand what he'd done wrong, but he must have done something. Otherwise Keith wouldn't be looking at him this way.

"Cinque!" Keith barked. "Take him back to the cell."

Shiro didn't even protest as the other Blade lead him away from Keith and back towards the cell, too shell-shocked to even try. His head was still trying to catch up, and his heart couldn't settle on how it wanted to feel- Keith was alive, but he was treating him like he was a stranger.

No, it wasn't that he was treating him like a stranger. That would be an improvement. He was treating him like he was the _enemy_.

He just didn't understand _why_.

* * *

By the time the other Blade- Cinque, based on what Keith had called her- returned him to his cell, Shiro's brain had mostly caught up with him.

Mostly.

While he was still reeling over the possibility of him and Keith being enemies, he'd at least had the time to settle on a few concrete facts. The first of which was the fact that Keith was _alive_\- and that this was unquestionably a good thing, no matter how at odds their current situation was. He was still his brother, and he was confident that whatever it was that was going on with him and the Blades, he could work something out.

He just had to figure out what it was first.

"You can uncuff me." Shiro told Cinque, as they watched him from the door. "I won't try to escape."

Cinque huffed, the sound odd and distorted under their Blade mask. "Just because he let you live doesn't mean we trust you."

"Then what do I have to do to earn that trust?" Shiro asked. "We had it once before. There must be a way to gain it again."

"_You _never had our trust." Cinque said. "And there's no way for you to gain it."

Shiro narrowed his eyes. Once again, the statement made no sense. The Blade of Marmora had trusted the paladins once- which was to say nothing of _Keith_, whose trust was apparently included in this. Even if he allowed himself to entertain the idea that Kolivan had held them at an arm's length even while they had been working together- not too far fetched, really, given the man's deep sense of caution- it was impossible for him to even _consider _the idea that Keith had never trusted him. Someone as private as Keith wouldn't have opened up to him to the degree he had if he didn't trust him.

But Cinque was making it sound like that had never been the case.

"What is it that you think I'm guilty of?" Shiro asked. "If we could just talk this out-"

"No." Cinque said, cutting him short. "No talking."

Shiro snapped his mouth shut, his lips screwing in a tight frown. He couldn't deny that he was starting to feel a bit frustrated- how was he supposed to figure out just what it was that was going on around here if nobody even allowed him to speak? That thought just made him angry, and he had to bite down on his tongue to keep himself from saying anything, reminding himself that this wasn't the way to behave. He couldn't lose his temper.

He didn't even remember _having _a temper before the Galra. They'd really done a number on him.

"Good." Cinque said, turning on their heel. "Wait here while we decide what to do with you."

Shiro watched them go. It wasn't like he had much of a choice. He was telling the truth when he said he wouldn't try to escape. Not now, not that he knew that Keith was here. Whatever else was going on, he wanted to at least somehow mend things with him.

He closed his eyes, Keith's scarred visage returning to mind. His Blade armor covered almost everything, leaving just how far they extended to his imagination. But from what he could see, they looked painful- in addition to making him look a lot more like the half Galra he actually was. The left half of his face was almost entirely purple, though it seemed to be unable to settle on an exact shade. The deeper the damage, the darker the shade of purple, and vice versa- the parts of his skin that were still that familiar shade of sandy peach must have been what _hadn't _been damaged in his suicide run on Haggar's ship.

It... wasn't much.

Heaving a sigh, Shiro slumped against the wall, sitting crosslegged on the floor. Until someone came for him, there wasn't much else for him to do but wait- and think.

And he wasn't sure how much he wanted to do of the latter.

* * *

"You lost your temper."

He didn't tear his eyes away from the black lion to glance back at Cinque, the Blade thankfully lingering in the doorway. He wasn't sure what expression he was making, but he didn't want anyone else to see it.

"I thought I was ready." Keith said finally. "I wasn't."

He'd braced himself to face him, even before Qui had arrived with a message from the governor. He'd sensed the black and red lions entering the system long before then, so the message hadn't come as a surprise. They all knew that it was only a matter of time before Lotor sent the paladins to intercede on his behalf, so he'd had plenty of time to steel himself for facing the imposter that wore Shiro's face. He thought he'd done enough.

Clearly, he hadn't.

That voice, that _face_... they were so alike that he almost let himself be fooled by them- just for a moment. That what he'd seen had been nothing more than a bad dream.

But he knew it wasn't.

Rubbing his left shoulder, he winced a little as it prickled underneath his touch. There was barely any mobility in the joint today, but he knew it would be better tomorrow. Then some other part of his body would ache, refusing to let him forget the fact that he had almost died.

No- he _had _died. He just didn't _stay _dead.

Shiro hadn't let him.

Keith removed his hand from his shoulder, instead touching one of the black lion's forelegs. He closed his eyes, trying to feel Shiro's energy within the lion- but the black lion's quintessence was so vast, so powerful, that it drowned out anything else. It was no wonder he'd never noticed it during his brief stint as the black paladin- but that didn't stop him from wishing that he had.

Maybe then he wouldn't have invited an imposter into the Castle with open arms.

He tried to reason with himself, convince himself that he had no way of knowing it was a fake. He'd been so desperate to find Shiro, that of course he would have ignored anything that didn't seem right with the one he'd found- and besides, he'd been imprisoned by the Galra _twice _now. If he had come back with a harsher temper, that was only because of the trauma he'd suffered. No one could blame him for that.

But he wasn't the real Shiro. The real Shiro was dead. _Had _been dead, ever since their fight with Zarkon. He'd told him that much himself, before he'd prevented him from crossing over and joining him on the other side. Or the astral plane. Or wherever it was that Shiro's spirit was trapped in. All he knew was that his soul was in the black lion, somehow- and that he had to get it back.

And while he was at it, deal with the fake.

"What should we do with him?" Cinque asked. "It doesn't sound like he knows anything useful."

Keith grimaced, opening his eyes. Shiro had told him that the fake didn't know anything about his part in Haggar's plans, but he hadn't wanted to believe him. It was so much easier to hate him if he thought he was a willing participant in his own deception- but he wasn't. He didn't know that Haggar had been using him to spy on the paladins and the Coalition, didn't know that _he _was the reason she had been so ready for them at Naxzela.

He didn't even know he was a clone.

"I don't know." Keith admitted. "Maybe we should ask Kolivan."

Cinque just tilted her head. "Kolivan put you in charge of this."

Keith huffed. He hadn't exactly forgotten that fact. He was the only one who could possibly control the black lion, though some part of him was amazed his connection was even still there. He'd _died_, after all- that kind of sounded like the sort of thing that would sever any connections he might have once had.

"Then Krolia." Keith said, the sound of his own mother's name still strange on his lips, even after nearly a year. "We can ask her."

He hadn't expected to be reunited with his mother after all this time, especially not while he had still been bound to a hospital bed, unable to so much as _walk_. That was where Kolivan had found him, in that pitiful state, though he didn't remember that part. He'd still been comatose when the Blade leader had retrieved him.

He did remember his mother being there when he woke up for the first time. He just didn't know she was his mother until awhile later.

"You know we can't risk contacting her openly." Cinque said.

Keith frowned, glaring down at the floor. He did know that. He just didn't want to have to make this decision himself, as pathetic as that sounded. It would be so much easier to dump it all on someone else. Part of him still wanted to kill the clone, like he'd originally planned- what right did he have to wear Shiro's face, to have his voice when the real Shiro was gone? Besides, it was _his _fault he'd nearly died. The universe would be better off without him.

But then... the clone hadn't been the one to tell him to ram his ship into that shield. He'd made that decision all on his own.

And he didn't know.

He didn't know, and that made him a victim- not a monster like he'd wanted him to be. He was just another pawn in Haggar's schemes. And somehow he didn't think the real Shiro would think much of him if he chose to kill someone who was, effectively, innocent. He hadn't even gotten a say in Haggar's awful plan.

Besides, killing someone after they had outlived their usefulness was something the Galra Empire would do, and he didn't want to be anything like them. But that didn't mean he'd let the clone go on believing he was anything other than a fake. No one could take Shiro's place, not even his clone.

He'd proven that much when he'd left him floundering, still uncertain about his new role as black paladin. He'd reached out a hand to him, and the clone hadn't even noticed. He'd just let him sink.

And he would never forgive him for that.

"We tell him." Keith said, resolutely. "And then he can decide."

Maybe he hadn't gotten a say in existing, but he could at least have a say in his ultimate fate. He wasn't sure if that was a mercy or not- and frankly, he didn't care. The fact that he wasn't aware of his own deception didn't mean Keith loathed him any less for it.

His brother was dead- and this fake would never replace him.

* * *

He wasn't sure how long it was before someone came for him again, but it didn't feel like it had been all that long. He'd been meditating- or trying to. It should have been easier without the constant headache, but the peace and serenity he sought had eluded him.

It wasn't like he didn't know _why_. It was hard to focus on anything when your own brother hated you- especially one that you had thought was dead until just now.

That said, he was surprised to see that it was Keith who came for him, and not just the other Blade from before. They were still with him, he noted. They had their mask down this time, revealing a Galra woman with lavender fur, with a darker violet crest of it extending from the center of her brow to the back of her head, before splitting off into two, hanging over her shoulders. She had the yellow eyes he'd come to expect from the Galra, and a stripe of darker red smeared across her brow, darker and thinner than the one Kolivan had.

But even with her added presence, it was clear that Keith was the one who had come to talk to him.

He had his hood down this time, making the stark white of his hair stand out all the more. Even his brows were white, though he wasn't sure if the lower, more purple part of his hair was real or just hair dye, if they even had that in space. It made him think of Krolia, and that made him think that maybe he should have listened to his instincts a lot sooner.

He stayed sitting. Keith didn't join him, not like he usually would.

"Keith, I-"

"Don't use my name." Keith harshly cut him off.

Shiro frowned, wondering what he was supposed to call him if not by his name, but decided not to argue. "Alright. I won't."

Keith narrowed his eyes, watching him with suspicion. "Good."

An awkward silence hung in the air, as if Keith wasn't quite sure what to say after that. Behind him, Cinque cleared her throat, but Keith's frown only deepened in response.

"So," Shiro began, sensing that he was having trouble finding the words he wanted, "-have you decided what to do with me yet?"

"Not yet." Keith said. "We thought we'd let you decide."

Shiro arched a brow, surprised at that. "Me?"

"Haggar was ready for us on Naxzela." Keith said, abruptly changing the subject. "Don't you understand what that means?"

Shiro's brow furrowed in thought. He hadn't thought about it before- he typically tried to avoid thinking about Naxzela if he could- but Keith was right. Haggar _had _been ready for them. A weapon that complex didn't seem like the kind of thing that could have been thrown together on the fly. He'd just assumed she had it prepared in the event something like that happened, but it sounded like...

"Are you suggesting she knew ahead of time?" Shiro asked. "Wait, Keith, are you-?"

"I said," Keith cut him off, "-don't use my name."

Shiro flinched in spite of himself. He wasn't used to having Keith's anger turn towards him, and the fact that he looked so much more Galra now definitely didn't help. How did that even happen? The scarring was one thing, but...

He pushed the question aside, trying to focus on what they were discussing now. Keith deserved his undivided attention, especially if what he was suggesting was actually true.

"Sorry." He said. "It just sounded a lot like you were suggesting that we have a spy in our camp."

Keith exhaled, but didn't look any less tense. "Yeah."

Shiro's frown deepened, hastily putting two and two together. He swallowed, a bead of sweat trickling down his neck, not liking what he came up with.

"You think it's me." Shiro stated.

"I don't just think it's you." Keith said. "I _know _it's you."

He said it with such resolve that Shiro found it hard to argue- especially when he kept thinking about it. Those headaches of his... what if they weren't just headaches, but were actually a sign of something else? Haggar and the druids had probed his memory when they had first captured him. Who was to say that she couldn't turn him into an unwitting mole?

The more he turned it over in his head, the more _right _it seemed. Keith had said that they'd cut his connection with Haggar, and sure enough, his headaches had stopped.

But if that was true, then...

...then he'd been putting everyone in danger, without even knowing it. And he was supposed to be their _leader_.

"I didn't," Shiro began, "-I didn't know. I _swear_, I didn't know."

Was that why Keith was treating him like this now? Because he'd been spying on them for Haggar? His stomach clenched at the thought. If Haggar knew about their designs on Naxzela because of him, then wasn't _he _the one responsible for the fact that Keith had nearly gotten himself killed? If it weren't for him, he would have never...

...but there still seemed to be something _missing _from that explanation. Something else he wasn't getting.

"I know." Keith said. "You didn't have a choice."

"No," Shiro's shoulders slumped, "-I didn't. And I can see why you wouldn't want to trust me after what happened. But we can fix this. There must be a way to fix this."

He couldn't stand the thought of being at odds with Keith for the rest of his life, almost as much as he couldn't stand the thought of having been unwittingly used by Haggar.

"You don't get it, do you?" Keith asked. "There's nothing between us to _fix_. There was never anything."

Shiro stared up at him, confusion in his features. "Keith?"

"I said-" Keith cut himself short, making a noise of frustration. "Stop talking to me like him."

"Like who?" Shiro asked, not understanding.

"Like Shiro!" Keith yelled.

He opened his mouth to protest, to point out that he _was _Shiro, but strangely, he couldn't bring himself to say it. Keith's eyes were barely recognizable now, but there was still something in them that stopped him short. It dawned on him that this was the first time the former red paladin had looked him in the eyes since he'd woken up here.

He didn't like what he saw there.

"You're not him." Keith said, drawing in a long breath as if to calm himself. "Shiro is dead. He died in the battle against Zarkon. He told me himself."

"That's not possible." He said. "I'm right here. I can't be dead."

"I know. You're not." Keith said. "Because you're not Shiro."

"Okay," he frowned, trying desperately to ignore the cold feeling sitting in his gut, the crawling dread that was threatening to consume him, "-then if I'm not Shiro, who am I?"

"Haggar needed a spy." Keith said. "Someone we would trust. So she made you."

He stared up at him, his eyes wide, not wanting to believe what he was hearing. "What are you say-?"

Keith's gaze didn't falter. He wished it would.

"You're his clone."


	5. the lost black paladin

Y'all have been waiting real patiently, but that wait is over now! Here's the update! Featuring almost everyone having a bad time of some kind and a surprise character reveal that some of you may or may not have expected. I hope everyone enjoys~!

As always, thanks for reading!

* * *

**ignis**

**chapter four**

**the lost black paladin**

* * *

"Don't you guys think Shiro's being awfully quiet?"

Allura blinked, startled out of her thoughts by Hunk's interruption. She'd only half been paying attention to the paladin's conversation, too busy dwelling on the situation that had brought them here in the first place. But now that he mentioned it, she realized Hunk was correct.

Shiro _had _been awfully quiet.

"That's weird," she heard Pidge say, "-his coms are down."

"Uh, you know what's weirder than his coms being down?" Lance asked.

"What?" Pidge asked.

"_Shiro _being gone."

Alarmed, Allura turned the blue lion around, realizing with a shock that Lance was correct. The black lion was _gone_.

"Okay, so I'm no expert," Hunk began, "- but that's bad, right?"

"Yes," Allura said slowly, internally cursing herself for not having noticed sooner, "-it is."

There was a brief silence, before the coms erupted into chaos. Allura winced, the paladin's voices all blending together in a disharmonious chorus. It was enough that she almost considered temporarily switching off the coms, but she knew that they would stop speaking over each other soon enough.

And sure enough-

"_Hey!_"

All at once, Lance and Hunk went silent. She could hear Pidge exhale, before the green paladin spoke again, clearly choosing her words carefully.

"First things first. We need to figure out exactly _where _we lost Shiro." Pidge said. "Hunk, try and get his coms back online. Even if the black lion is down, we should still be able to connect with the coms in his helmet."

"Copy that." Hunk said.

"I'll do a sonic scan of the area, to see if we missed anything." Allura offered, already starting to run the program. She didn't think they had, but it wouldn't hurt to check.

After all, she wouldn't exactly put cloaking past Gnov.

"I'll take Red and scan the area." Lance said. "If the black lion just lost power somewhere, I'll find him."

"Good." Pidge said. "Make sure to stay in constant communication though, and _be careful_. We can't afford to-"

She could hear Pidge swallow, as if choking on her own words. Allura clenched the controls of the blue lion tighter, already knowing what she was going to say.

"-we can't afford to lose anyone else."

The silence lasted slightly longer this time, with a far more somber edge to it. Today seemed as if it were shaping up as one of unwanted remembrances.

"Don't worry," Lance promised, "-I'll be careful."

If she didn't know him so well, she might have been surprised at how unusually serious he sounded. She never could have imagined Lance having such a side when they first met, but now it was hard to forget, even when he was goofing around.

She'd never really gotten the chance to know Keith like that.

"I'll check for any anomalies." Pidge said. She didn't openly acknowledge Lance's reassurances, but nevertheless, Allura could tell that they helped. "Someone should probably contact Coran and let him know what's going on. He might be able to find something with the Castle's scanners that we can't."

"Oh!" Hunk exclaimed. "Maybe he could use that tracker we built to find the comet? I mean, we've never used it to find a _lion _before, but-"

"Because when we built it, we blocked the lions' signals so they wouldn't interfere with the comet's frequency." Pidge reminded him. "I mean, I guess we _could _adjust it, but we'd need to actually physically _be _in the Castle to do that. And no offense, but I'm not sure I trust Coran with that level of engineering."

"Oh yeah," Hunk audibly frowned, "-I forgot about that."

"Well, I'm not picking anything up on the sonic scan," Allura reported, "-so I'll go ahead and inform Coran of the situation. Should I have him check the tracker just in case?"

"Eh, couldn't hurt." Pidge's shrug was audible, as was her frown. "I'm not picking up on any anomalies either. Hunk, what about-?"

"No luck with either of the coms." Hunk said. "Whatever it was that cut them off must have cut them both. I'm trying a workaround, but..."

He went silent for a few ticks, then said, "-nope. Doesn't look like it's working. Sorry."

"That's quite alright." Allura assured him, even as her gut twisted further with concern.

"Any luck on your end, Lance?" Hunk asked.

"No sign of the black lion so far, but I'll keep looking." Lance said. "You don't think he could have somehow been pulled down to the planet, do you? Maybe the Viridi aren't too wild about our little peace mission."

"It's... possible." Allura admitted.

The planet _was _in range, after all. Turning the blue lion towards it, she frowned. She'd been so focused on Ignis when they'd entered the system that she hadn't really stopped to look at the planet it revolved around. She'd expected something greener given its name, but at least from here, the planet looked a dismal gray. It certainly _looked _less inviting than its lunar counterpart.

And Lance's idea... it certainly had merit, but something about it still seemed... _off_, she supposed. Whatever had made the black lion disappear had done so without leaving so much as a trace behind- not to mention the fact that at no point, had the other lions been alerted. Did the Viridi really have the means to do something like that?

She didn't know. The only thing she could think of was that someone else had called out to the black lion and had overpowered Shiro's control, but that was impossible. There were only two other people who could pilot the black lion- and both were dead.

(It truly was a day for dwelling on the past, it seemed.)

Shaking it off, Allura connected to the Castle's coms. "Coran? Coran, are you there?"

"I'm here, princess." Coran said, coming onscreen. "Is something wrong? You look distressed."

"You could say that." Allura said. "We successfully took out Gnov's fleet, however we seem to have lost the black lion somewhere."

Coran blinked. "Lost?"

"It's not where it should be." Allura said. "We also seem to be unable to contact Shiro."

Coran's expression darkened. "That's certainly distressing news. I can try and run a scan, but I'm not sure how much I can promise."

"Thank you." Allura said. "Hunk suggested that you might try using the tracker he and Pidge built to trace the comet?"

"I can certainly try." Coran said. "Give me just a tick."

After a few anxious ticks, Coran shook his head, visibly disappointed. "I'm sorry, Princess. Neither the Castle's scans nor that of the comet tracker came up with anything. I can try again, but-"

"That's quite alright." Allura said, even though it wasn't, not really- but that didn't make it _Coran's _fault. "We'll do one more sweep of the area before we return to the Castle."

"Understood." Coran said. "Should we contact Governor Linum?"

Allura tried hard not to wince. This wasn't exactly a great start to their diplomatic mission, but Shiro's safety was far more important than good impressions. Perhaps the governor could even help.

That is, provided that _she _didn't have anything to do with it. Lance's suggestion had been a good one, but it wasn't _just _the Viridi they had to consider. And while she couldn't think of how making the black lion and Shiro disappear would benefit Ignis, she wasn't ready to rule it out just yet.

After all, she'd thought the Blades had been their allies, only to have them completely disappear without a word. The knowledge that Kolivan was likely still watching them from somewhere left her ill at ease, as much as she had grown to trust him during their partnership. There was already too much at stake to have a completely unknown variable out there.

Come to think of it, perhaps _they _had something to do with this.

"Please." Allura said, momentarily pushing the thought aside. It was far too early to jump to any conclusions. "Make sure to use a secure line. The last thing we want is for this to get out."

If their enemies were to learn that Voltron was without a lion, they wouldn't hesitate to strike and that was the _last _thing they needed right now.

Coran nodded. "Understood, Princess."

Switching off the Castle's line, Allura heaved a long sigh. This was starting to bring back unpleasant memories of the _first _time Shiro had disappeared on them.

(Only back then, Keith had still been alive.)

"Any good news from Coran?" Hunk asked.

"I'm afraid not." Allura said. "Any word from Lance?"

"I've got nothing." Lance said. "Sorry."

"It's alright." Allura said, even though it _still _wasn't. But just like it hadn't been Coran's fault, it wasn't Lance's fault either.

"So now what?" Hunk asked.

"We scan the area together, one more time." Allura said. "If we fail to find anything, then we return to the Castle. I've already instructed Coran to contact Governor Linum. She may be able to help."

"Let's hope." Pidge said.

Closing her eyes, Allura drew in a breath. _Let's hope_ indeed.

* * *

"You're his clone."

For a moment, all he heard was static- then everything came back in a rush.

He almost wished it hadn't.

"I," he stammered, his brain racing a mile a minute to process what he'd just heard and _still _failing, "-you're saying I'm a _clone_?"

"Yes."

Keith's expression didn't change- or maybe it did. With his mismatched eyes, it was impossible to tell.

Or maybe he just never knew Keith as well as he thought.

Maybe he never knew him at all.

No. No, that couldn't be right. There was no way he could be a clone. He had all his memories, didn't he? Sure, he might be missing some from when the Galra had imprisoned him, but he'd been missing those before too. He _couldn't _be a clone.

And yet.

"I," he said, the words tumbling out, "-I need some time. To think."

Keith narrowed his mismatched eyes, both too Galra for comfort. He'd been the Guardian of Fire once, but now there was nothing but ice in his gaze. The cell they were keeping him in was warm, but he shivered, suddenly feeling cold.

Those were _not _the eyes of someone who thought of him as a brother.

Then Keith turned on his heel, finally breaking eye contact. He hated how grateful he felt.

"Take your time."

He left, but he didn't take the cold air with him.

He exhaled, looking up to the remaining Blade. For just a second, something in her gaze almost seemed to soften, but it vanished as quick as it came, leaving him to wonder if he'd just imagined it. He'd heard Keith call her _Cinque_, but the name wasn't familiar to him. If he'd met her while the Blade had still been aligned with Voltron, then he'd never heard her spoken to by name.

"If I uncuff you," she said slowly, "-will you promise to behave?"

He swallowed, slowly nodding. Right now an escape attempt was the last thing on his mind.

Cinque narrowed her eyes, and for a second, he thought she might change her mind. But then she reached behind him, removing the cuff from his left wrist. He went to rub it, only to remember that he didn't have his prosthetic anymore either.

"Thank you."

"Don't get the wrong idea." Cinque said, taking a step back. "You make one step out of line, and your head will hit the ground faster than the rest of you."

He'd never been much of one to let himself be intimidated, but even so, he couldn't help but swallow at the threat. Something told him that she wouldn't hesitate to follow through with it.

Something told him Keith wouldn't even try to stop it.

"I'll keep that in mind," he finally said.

Cinque nodded, clipping the cuffs to her belt. She locked the door behind her as she left, once again leaving him alone in the dimly lit cell. He had to fight back a shudder, the whole situation bringing back unpleasant memories of his time as a prisoner of the Galra Empire. This cell was bigger than the one he'd been kept in, but it was just as dark. He could hear water dripping from somewhere, a constant, steady trickle that was bound to drive him mad before long.

That was, if his own thoughts didn't do it first.

_"You're his clone."_

His _clone_.

Keith's words kept ringing in his head, even as he tried to drive them out. Drawing in a deep breath, he closed his eyes, slowly exhaling in an attempt to calm himself. But all he could see were Keith's mismatched eyes, cold as ice, looking at him at first as if he were the enemy, and then as if he were _nothing_.

Honestly, he wasn't sure which one was worse.

A spy. A clone.

Not Shiro.

Not the person he thought he was. An _imposter_.

Running a hand through his hair, he grasped at his forelock. It was white, like it had been ever since he'd escaped from the Galra. He couldn't remember when the color had changed, or how. He honestly hadn't even realized it until after he'd crash landed on Earth.

Except... had he ever actually _been _to Earth? If what Keith was saying was true...

No. It couldn't be right. It _couldn't_.

And yet...

...and yet he'd been so willing to accept the possibility that he might be a spy. It had made sense. The headaches, the irritability, the fact that Haggar always seemed to be one step ahead of them... it all made sense. He'd felt like something was off ever since he'd returned to the Castle, but he could never figure out _what_. But if Haggar had tampered with him...

Except it didn't explain everything. Not really.

It didn't explain why the black lion had rejected him at first. It didn't explain why he so often didn't feel like himself, as if he were a square peg trying to fight itself into a round hole. It was a feeling that had haunted him ever since his second escape, and while he'd learned to tune it out after awhile, under the impression that it was just some new form that his trauma was taking on... what if it _wasn't_?

What if Keith was right?

What if he _was _a clone?

Or maybe this was all a trick. Dropping his hand, he balled it into a fist. Maybe this was all an elaborate ruse set up by Gnov, or Sendak, or some other enemy of the Voltron Alliance. Maybe Cinque wasn't actually a Blade, and maybe Keith wasn't actually Keith.

Maybe _he _was the clone.

Except Keith had been able to call the black lion to him, and he'd been able to do it remotely. That wasn't the work of an imposter.

But above all... he just didn't want to consider it. This Keith being a fake meant that the real Keith really _was _dead, and he... he didn't want that. Keith being alive was nothing short of a miracle and he refused to taint that, even-

-even if it meant accepting things he'd rather not accept.

Uncurling his fist, he stared down at his hand. If Keith was right, if what he had said was true...

...then Takashi Shirogane was dead, and _he _was the imposter. He wasn't the black paladin, the leader of Voltron. He never had been.

He wasn't Shiro. He never had been.

And now, with his connection to her supposedly cut, he wasn't even Haggar's spy.

So then... who exactly _was _he?

* * *

"Keith-"

"I don't want to talk about it."

He could see Cinque's frown even without turning around, so he didn't need to. Instead he kept his gaze fixed straight up, staring up at the black lion, his arms crossed tightly in front of his chest. The black lion stared back at him, but it was only the lion.

No Shiro.

"Are you _sure _you don't want to talk about it?"

Gritting his teeth, Keith narrowed his eyes. "_Yes_."

He heard Cinque sigh, muttering something about _younglings _underneath her breath. He pointedly ignored it, pretending to inspect the black lion instead. He'd already done exactly that when they'd first brought it in, so he'd already verified that there hadn't been any damage, nor were there any suspiciously placed tracking devices. Cinque had done a more thorough scan on the latter point, because the last thing they wanted was for Haggar to be able to find them. Just because she'd been quiet these past few months, that didn't mean it would _stay _that way.

Especially now that they had cut her connection to her spy.

To the _clone_.

He wanted to _hate _him. It should have been easy. He'd _tricked _him, tricked _everyone_, and on top of that, he'd been the reason why they'd almost failed at Naxzela. If he hadn't taken deceive action, then they could have- they _would _have all died.

And the universe's only hope would have died with them.

So yeah, he wanted to hate him. He _had _been hating him. With the distance between them, it had been easy. Without the clone right in his face, he could focus on the negative all he wanted, getting angrier and angrier at the imposter that had taken Shiro's place, who had lied to and tricked them all, but especially _him_.

But the reality... the reality was different.

Exhaling, he dropped his arms. The real Shiro remained quiet, and without him, the black lion just felt cold and imposing. It had let him take control of it, but that had probably only been because they were on the same side- not because it recognized him as its paladin.

The air, he thought, felt stale.

Turning on his heel, he didn't quite meet Cinque's eyes. "I'm going aboveground. Qui should be back by now. We should send our report."

Sure enough, the older Blade was frowning. "I could-"

"No," he said firmly, "-someone needs to stay and watch the prisoner."

_Someone who isn't __**me**_, he didn't say.

The clone wasn't the only one who needed time to think.

Cinque watched him for a moment longer, before her gaze hardened again, slipping into that neutral mask that seemingly every Blade other than him had perfected.

"Alright," she said, "-but remain cautious. The paladins are likely already searching."

"I know." Keith said. "Don't worry. They won't be coming out this far."

Not _yet_, at least. They'd hidden the black lion's presence well, but he didn't know if it would _stay _hidden.

No, they still had time- he just wasn't sure if they had _enough_.

What they'd planned on, and what they'd expected, was that they would be able to get Haggar's location from the clone and then kill it. With the clone dead, it wouldn't matter if the paladins found the black lion. They would be long gone once they did.

At least, that had been the plan. Only now it turned out that not only did the clone know nothing about Haggar, it didn't even know it _was _a clone. Unless it- _he_\- was lying, but somehow, he didn't think so.

He almost wished he was. It would be easier that way.

* * *

"Has there been any word?"

"Yes, princess." Looking up as she entered, Coran's expression was still grim. "The governor has promised to give us any assistance we need in locating Shiro."

Taking off her helmet, Allura tucked it under one arm. "Good. It will be sorely needed."

"I take it you didn't find any sign of him?" Coran asked.

"Nothing." Lance said. "It's like he just vanished."

"You know, _again_." Hunk said, before apparently thinking better of it, guiltily staring down at his feet. "Sorry."

"It's okay, buddy." Lance said, patting him on the shoulder. "I think we were all thinking it."

"I will admit, it's becoming a rather disturbing trend." Allura frowned, before looking towards Hunk, who in spite of Lance's reassurances, still looked rather down. "Didn't you say something about modifying the comet scanner so it could pick up on the black lion's signature?"

Hunk perked up, but before he could get a word in edgewise, Pidge chimed in. "Actually _I _was the one who said that. But yeah, we should probably get on it."

Hunk nodded, looking slightly more energized now that he had a task to accomplish. "Any chance we can borrow the mice? I don't know if we'll actually _need _them this time, but-"

"Of course." Allura said. "They are rather useful for squeezing into tight spaces."

"What should I do?" Lance asked. He was shifting on his feet, clearly anxious to do _something_. It was a feeling she could relate to all too well.

"I was planning on speaking with the governor directly." Allura said. "You can join me, if you like."

"Or you can stay here, help me do some scans!" Coran offered. "Could always use an extra hand!"

"No offense, but I think I'll go with Allura." Lance said, his eyes briefly darting in her direction. "I just don't think it's a good idea to be alone right now."

Allura blinked. She'd been so fixated on solving the problem with Shiro, that she hadn't even stopped to consider the possibility that it might not be just _him _in danger. But Lance was correct- now really wasn't a good time to be on one's own- not when they didn't know who they were dealing with.

And if there was even the _slightest _chance the governor was in on it...

...well, going alone was far from advisable.

She smiled at Lance. "I could certainly use the company."

"Speaking of talking to people," Pidge interjected, "-has anyone told Lotor yet?"

Allura grimaced. That was yet another thing that had slipped her mind in all of the chaos. And in truth, it wasn't a conversation she was particularly looking forward to. Mysteriously losing a paladin- their _leader _no less- as soon as they arrived was not particularly a good look.

"Let's... wait on that, just a tick." Allura said.

Pidge just shrugged. "Works for me."

"I'll keep doing scans of the nearby area." Coran said. "See if I pick anything up."

Allura nodded, briefly sparing the older Altean a smile. "Let us know if you find anything."

"Will do, princess." Coran said. "You and Lance stay safe."

"We will." Allura promised. "Hopefully the governor knows something."

"Or Krolia." Lance added. "I mean, she's been here before, right? She might know something."

At the mention of the Galra lieutenant, Allura frowned. Speaking of things she'd momentarily let herself forget...

_"She looks a bit like him,"_ she abruptly recalled herself saying,_ "-doesn't she?"_

Shaking the recollection off, Allura tried to put it from her mind. She'd barely just met Krolia- it was a little too soon to suspect her as a spy, especially not due to something as flimsy as a vague resemblance. Besides, she'd been hand picked by Lotor. She struggled to believe that he wouldn't have been so careless as to choose someone that he suspected for a mission so important.

(Unless he did, and this was his way of testing her. But surely he'd tell them...?)

But she didn't say any of that. Instead she turned towards Coran, instructing him to open another line to the governor. She had her suspicions, but for the time being she would hold them back. She had no proof of anything, and had no way to bring it up without first bringing up _Keith_.

It was already a day for bad memories. No need to make it needlessly worse.

* * *

Officially, the Blade of Marmora had no presence on Ignis.

Unofficially?

Well. That was a different story.

Stopping to change out of his Blade armor and into civilian clothing before heading aboveground, Keith winced as he pulled on a boot. Lightly touching his left shoulder, he held his breath, waiting for the pain to subside. It did, though not as quickly as he would have liked. The Blade didn't have the luxury of healing pods, to say nothing of the chain of mostly underground doctors whose hands he had passed through before they had found him.

Honestly, he was just lucky to be in one piece.

Well. Mostly.

But even if he still hurt more days than he didn't, it didn't change the fact that he had a job to do. He couldn't rest, not until _after _they'd defeated Haggar.

_And _her son.

The pain having mostly subsided, Keith finished pulling on his boots. Grabbing his jacket, he tugged it on, his fingers barely ghosting over the material. It wasn't quite leather, like his old jacket had been, and it wasn't red, but the dark purple material felt somehow more appropriate for who he was now. He wasn't the red paladin of Voltron anymore- or a paladin at all.

He was a Blade now.

No matter what happened from this point on, he couldn't let himself forget that.

Now a lot more inconspicuously dressed, he headed towards where the underground section of their base met the aboveground. Pressing his hand against the access panel there, it flashed green, the door sliding open to allow him access to the stairs. They led up to the backroom of a mechanics shop, one officially run by Cinque as a cover.

Once inside, the door slid shut behind him, a false panel sliding into its place, making it look like just another part of the wall. The backroom was a storm of unmitigated chaos, half to make it more difficult for intruders to navigate, and half just because Cinque was

inherently messy. Typing a code into another access panel, it flashed green, unlocking the door that lead into the actual shop itself. The handle on the other side was biometric, allowing only a handful of registered people inside.

The storefront, he quickly noted, wasn't empty.

But then, he hadn't expected it to be. Even if Qui wasn't here yet- which one look towards the waiting area proved he was- there was still the person they'd left to actually watch the shop while they were both belowground with the clone. Still, there were no actual _customers_, which more than worked for him.

The girl at the register noticed him first, her ears twitching as they caught the sound of the door behind her opening and closing. Pivoting on her heel, she folded her arms in front of her, her twin pigtails cutting through the air like a knife, and her glare just as sharp.

"There you are!" She exclaimed, loudly enough that she startled Qui. "I was just about to go down and get you. Qui has been waiting for nearly fifteen quintants now!"

"Sorry," he said, "-things didn't exactly go as planned."

The girl frowned, any lingering annoyance vanishing in the blink of an eye. "In a bad way, or-?"

"Not... entirely?" Keith frowned. "We captured the clone, but he's not- we don't think he knows where Haggar is."

"Oh," the girl's frown deepened, "-that _is _a problem."

"Well _that _sucks." Qui remarked from where he sat, running a finger around the rim of a mug. "So can I see the black lion yet?"

"Not yet." Rolling his eyes, Keith crossed his arms in front of his chest, before eyeing the mug. "And you know this is a _mechanic's shop_, and not a cafe, right?"

"Hey, it's not _my _fault that Miss Romelle makes the best cup of _calipa _in town." Qui said, placing a clawed hand over his heart. "I didn't even ask for it this time!"

Narrowing his eyes, Keith squinted at Romelle. "I thought we talked about this."

Romelle flushed guiltily, avoiding eye contact as she twiddled her thumbs. "I just thought he looked thirsty, that's all. It _is _awfully hot out there."

"It's a desert," Keith deadpanned, "-_of course_ it's hot."

"Don't get so mad, old man!" Qui said, baring his fangs in a broad smile. "You're just upset that you can't make a good cup to save your life."

Keith twitched, briefly wondering if this was some form of karma for having called Shiro an _old timer_ when he was Qui's age. Still, he didn't remember having been _this _much of a brat. And why the heck did he get old man, and Romelle got _miss_? He never thought he'd be one to care much about respect, but he had to admit, the difference in treatment was more than a little annoying. If this was anywhere else, he would chalk it up to only being half Galra, but this was _Ignis_. The weird obsession with blood purity that the Empire had didn't have a place here.

It was part of the reason he'd kind of come to like it here.

"Look," he said, forcing back his annoyance, "-I just need you to go back to Linum and tell her that there's been some complications."

"What kind of complications?" Qui asked. "I mean, if you're going to be that vague, you might as well just call her."

Okay, fair enough. The whole point of using an actual messenger as a go-between between them and the Governor was so that they could avoid anyone listening in on their communications. Usually it was an extra step that they didn't bother taking, but with Pidge around, the extra caution was _more _than needed. Just because Haggar's spy had been removed, it didn't mean the paladins were secure now.

As long as Lotor was involved, they wouldn't be.

"Our theory that the clone was an active participant in Haggar's deception was wrong," the words felt heavy on his tongue even as he spoke them, "-he wasn't."

"Oh." Qui blinked, looking less amused now. "That _is _a complication."

"Yeah," Keith said curtly, pointedly ignoring the concerned way Romelle looked at him, "-so hurry up and tell the governor."

If they couldn't use the clone to get to Haggar, then they had just exposed their hand to the witch. They'd always known that there was an element of risk involved with this plan, but he'd kind of expected there to be more _reward _too.

Instead all they'd gotten was problems.

"Don't have to tell me twice." Qui said, hopping to his feet, dropping the mug into Romelle's hands. "I'll be back with her reply as soon as I'm able."

Keith nodded, following him as he exited the shop. He watched as he got on his flyer, becoming little more than a dark streak against the desert sands before long. He stayed there for a few moments, half savoring the warmth of the desert sun against his aching shoulder and half just trying to avoid talking to Romelle. He could feel her watching him, words of sympathy already heavy on her lips.

He wasn't sure he wanted to hear it.

He turned, looking off into the distance instead. From here, he could just barely make out Rida's capital building, towering over the desert. On a flyer like Qui's, it was about an hour from here to there. Other than Cinque's shop, there were only a handful of buildings nearby, none of which were close enough to theirs to notice who was coming and going from the place. Just because the Blade's presence on Ignis was an open secret, that didn't mean they were actively advertising their presence.

It kind of reminded him of home.

Finally realizing he couldn't put it off much longer, Keith turned on his heel. He hadn't wanted to talk to Cinque about Shi- about the clone, but Romelle was different. At least she understood what it was like to lose a brother.

(But she'd never had to experience an imposter wearing his face.)

"Any news from the colony?"

Romelle shook her head, her lips set in a tight frown. "No. Merla says everything is quiet. There hasn't been another ship bound for the _new colony_ since Bandor's left."

She spat out the words _new colony_ in disgust- not that he could blame her. He hadn't even known the people there, but the image of them still haunted him. He could only imagine that for someone who did, it was ten times worse.

Romelle's entire family had been there.

(He couldn't imagine what that was like.)

"That's good though, right?" Keith asked. "The less time Lotor spends on the colony, the less likely he is to notice you're missing."

"If he ever paid attention to me at all." Romelle snorted, rolling her eyes. "I just hope that once we have the chance to take him down, I get to do the honors of doing him in."

In spite of himself, Keith quirked a faint grin. "Sounds like you're getting into your role."

If he ignored the telltale shape of the lighter purple marks on her cheeks, then she sounded as Galra as she currently looked. Even with this much distance between them and the city, and even with the Blade's presence here, they couldn't exactly let an obvious Altean walk around in the open. The obvious solution was for Romelle to transform herself, blending in with the local population.

A year ago, he would have stuck out like a sore thumb. Now he just blended right in.

"Well not to brag," Romelle said, puffing out her chest, "-but I _was _selected for the lead role in the harvest festival two years running."

"I can believe it." Keith said. "You did a great job coaching Seti for her school play."

Romelle preened at the compliment, before catching herself, taking on a much sterner expression as she locked eyes with him. "You're avoiding the subject."

"It's a distinct possibility." Keith admitted, grabbing a chair. "Any chance you saved some of that _calipa _for me?"

"It's a distinct possibility." Romelle said. "I picked up some new spices this morning when I dropped Seti off. Do you want to try them?"

"Shoot." Keith said.

Rolling her eyes, Romelle nevertheless busied herself making a new cup of _calipa_. "And here I thought the _Galra _were the ones with the violent sayings."

Keith huffed, watching the Altean as she worked. For a long time she didn't say anything else, too absorbed in the process of making a cup of what was as close to coffee as he could get out here. Pidge would probably kill for the stuff.

"So is it true?"

"Is _what _true?" Keith asked, even though he already knew.

"That the clone didn't know." Romelle said.

"...yeah. It's true." Keith admitted, almost more to himself than to Romelle.

He was still angry, but he couldn't keep pretending that the clone hadn't been a victim in all of this too. He hadn't known what he was doing. He'd really thought he was Shiro, up until he'd told him otherwise.

He almost regretted how mean he'd been to him about it.

_Almost_.

"I'm sorry." Romelle said, placing a mug down in front of him. "What are you going to do now?"

"I don't know." Keith admitted, picking up the mug. "What _should _I do?"

"Are you asking me for advice?" Romelle asked, arching a brow as she sat down across from him. "That doesn't sound like you."

"Who knows, maybe I'm a clone too." Keith half-joked, taking a long sip of _calipa_.

"Well if you _are _asking," Romelle said, "-then I think you should ask him for help."

Keith nearly choked, looking at her skeptically. "You want me to ask the clone for _help_?"

"Why not?" Romelle shrugged. "He's thought of himself as a paladin this long. Why wouldn't he help?"

He opened his mouth to say something back to that, only to snap it shut. She... kind of had a point. If there was anyone who had a reason to want to take out Haggar, it was the clone. After all, he was her victim too, wasn't he?

If Shiro were here, he thought, he'd give him a second chance.

"I'll... think about it."

* * *

"I shall await your arrival, Princess."

Exhaling, Linum leaned back in her chair. Momentarily closing her eyes, she took a moment to gather her thoughts before opening them again, looking across the room at her other guest.

"It seems your son has enacted the plan."

Taking a step forward, Krolia arched a brow. "You seem less than enthused."

Idly rubbing the ring on her finger, Linum frowned. "I understand the importance of this operation, but like any ruler, I cannot help but be concerned with the fate of my people. In light of the recent threats, the timing is..."

"The Blade of Marmora understands the position we put your people in." Krolia stated. "That is why Kolivan has offered what Blades he can spare to help bolster security."

"I know." Linum said, dropping her hand. "I have great faith in Kolivan. Our people's alliance with yours has kept us safe for generations."

"The trick is to ensure the paladins do not become aware of it." Krolia observed, gazing out the window. "Princess Allura is clever. If she realizes there is a connection..."

"-she may suspect us." Linum finished.

Earning the ire of the paladins of Voltron was not what she wished for, as much as she was acting behind their backs. She was doing what was necessary, but as no one knew what level of information was being shared between mother and son, certain precautions were required. The last thing she wanted to summon on her people was the wrath of Haggar and her druids, what few of them were left.

(The druids were already few, but Kolivan had ensured that their numbers were fewer still.)

A soft knock at her door drew her attention away from her thoughts. Qui must have returned.

"Enter."

The door opened, Yi barely managing to stand aside in time to let her brother in. He skidded to a stop upon spotting Krolia, his back instantly going stiff in an attempt to appear more serious.

"I have a message from the Blades." Qui reported, trying for all the world to sound older than he was. "It's about the clone."

In spite of herself, the edge of her lips twitched. It would seem that his desire to become a Blade one day hadn't lessened in the least.

"Speak." Linum said. "Have they been able to ascertain the witch's location?"

Qui shifted uncomfortably on his feet, his eyes darting briefly over to Krolia, before back towards her. He shook his head, his usual rambunctious energy giving way to nerves. "Yeah, about that... turns out, he doesn't know where she is. Or uh, that he was a spy."

Linum blinked, meeting Krolia's eyes. The Blade's eyes were already narrowed in thought, contemplating what this meant for them. They'd been under the impression that the clone was aware of his own deceptions, so if they were wrong...

...well, that certainly made things more difficult.

"And?" Krolia asked. "What has become of the clone?"

"It's still alive... I think?" Qui frowned. "I'm not sure they know what to do with it."

Krolia's frown deepened, a hand straying to her chin in thought. After a moment she looked in her direction. "Permission to join my- to join the others?"

Linum shook her head. "I would love to grant it, but it is possible the Princess would like to speak with you as well. I would be hard pressed to explain your absence."

Narrowing her eyes, Krolia nevertheless gave her a firm nod of acknowledgment. "Understood."

She knew that no matter how much she hid it, it bothered her not to be with her son in this moment. To her understanding, he'd once had a close relationship with the real black paladin, so this had to be a difficult situation for him to navigate. Truthfully, she wanted to be there herself, though her reasons differed from those of Krolia's.

But she had confidence in Cinque, as Krolia did in her son.

Turning back to Qui, Linum placed her hands on her lap, one hand ghosting over her ring. "The clone should be left alive- for now, at least. I will personally run interference with the paladins for as long as I can."

"And tell Keith to try and not let his emotions get the better of him." Krolia added, though she nearly missed the way she muttered, "-though I couldn't blame if they did."

Qui nodded, slightly more eager now that his bad news had gone over relatively well. "Anything else?"

"The Altean princess is on her way here shortly." Linum said after a moment's thought. "The other Altean mentioned something about modifying a _comet scanner_. I assume that will make more sense to Keith than it does to me, but it feels worth mentioning."

"Other than that," she shook her head, "-I have nothing else to offer."

"Copy that!" Qui grinned, giving her a rather casual salute. "I'll get over there as fast as the wind!"

"Be careful as you leave." Krolia said. "We can't have the princess or the blue paladin spotting you."

Performing a much more solemn salute, Qui nodded. "They won't see me, I _promise_."

The upward curve of Krolia's lips would have gone unnoticed if she didn't know her so well, as would the faint glint of amusement in her eyes, but she did, and therefore did not miss them. Qui, on the other hand, did.

"Good." Krolia said. "Now go."

"Yes, ma'am!"

He nearly bolted after that, almost bowling over his other sister on the way out. Ui huffed, before swiftly recovering from her breach of decorum and closing the door. Once it was shut, she turned to face Krolia, her lips set in a tight line.

"Well," she began, "-it would seem our mission just became far more complicated."

"Since when has anything we do been simple?" Krolia asked.

Far too long, she couldn't help but think.

* * *

Linum was not waiting to greet them this time.

Instead they were ushered into her office by one of the two Galra servants who had guided them before, though for the life of her, she could not tell if they were Ui or Yi. There Linum was waiting for them- and so was Krolia.

Linum must have caught the slight arch of her brow, for she returned it with one of her own, glancing in the Lieutenant's direction. "I assumed you would wish to speak with the lieutenant as well, so I took the liberty of summoning her."

Allura simply nodded, sliding into one of the prepared seats, Lance sitting down next to her. Krolia, as she did the previously, remained standing. She watched the lieutenant out of the corner of her eye, her gaze trailing over her features, making a note of the shape of her eyes and the familiar cut of her chin.

They _did _look an awful lot alike.

"Have you learned anything new?" Linum asked, snapping her full attention back to the governor.

"Unfortunately, no." Allura said. "I was hoping that perhaps you could tell us something."

"I'm afraid we don't know any more than you do, Princess." Linum apologized. "We've received threats from some of the Viridi in the past, but it is hard to imagine that they would take action against one of the paladins like this."

"Threats?" Allura asked, narrowing her eyes. "What sort of threats?"

"Nothing specific," Linum said, "-and I do not believe that they have the power to act on them. I _certainly _don't believe that they have the means to capture a Voltron lion."

"So if it wasn't them, then who was it?" Lance asked.

"I cannot say for sure." Linum said. "I cannot think of anyone on Ignis who would want to do the paladins harm, and even if there are any..."

"-you can't think of any who would have the means to capture a Voltron lion." Allura finished.

Linum nodded, a grave expression on her face. If she was acting, then she was doing a very good job of it.

Glancing up, Allura looked in Krolia's direction. "What about you?"

"The Viridi may be attempting to interfere with negotiations." Krolia suggested. "But we cannot rule out the possibility that Gnov is behind this."

"Those _were _Gnov's ships." Lance mused.

"It's a possibility," Allura admitted, "-though I fail to see how Gnov could have gotten away so quickly, and without us noticing."

Unless...

...no, she didn't want to consider it. She truly didn't. But there was, she realized, at least _one _person who could make the black lion effectively disappear, without them noticing a thing.

It also happened to be the worst option of them all.

It would have been bad enough if it were Gnov. Not only would that mean that the Galra now had their hands on a Voltron lion, it also meant that Shiro would have ben captured by them for a third time. After how badly the second time had effected him... dwelling on the possibilities of what a third imprisonment might do truly churned her stomach.

But worse than Gnov, worse than anyone or anything else, was _Haggar_.

But it couldn't be Haggar. Haggar couldn't create wormholes.

...could she?

(She was, after all, _Altean_.)

Allura jerked to her feet, momentarily losing her composure. If Haggar had captured Shiro, then...

"Allura?"

The sound of Lance's concerned voice broke her out of her reverie. Realizing that all eyes were on here, she felt a red flush creep onto her cheeks. "I- pardon me. I just realized something we may have overlooked. I need to return to the Castle at once to check."

"Overlooked?" Linum inquired, her brows a knot of concern.

"There is only one person I can think of that could make a lion disappear," Allura began, forcing her voice to remain calm though she was the furthest thing from it, "-and if it _was _her, then it is more than just Shiro who is in danger."

"Wait, you don't mean...?" Lance trailed off, his eyes going wide. "Okay, that's bad. That's _really _bad."

"That is precisely why there is no time to waste." Allura said. "I apologize, but perhaps we can continue this conversation later."

Linum frowned, an expression of concern written across her features. "Of course. But who...?"

"Haggar."

Allura's head snapped up, looking in Krolia's direction. The lieutenant met her eyes, but they were virtually unreadable while all the while remaining haunting in their familiarity. Forcing her expression to stay neutral, she slowly inclined her head.

"I am afraid so."

"In that case, you should hurry." Krolia said. "Go. I will inform Emperor Lotor."

Allura nodded, briefly sparing a glance back in Linum's direction. The half Galra simply nodded, her expression far more grave than before. Looking down at Lance, he met her eyes, getting to his feet without a second's hesitation.

They had already lost one paladin to Haggar. She refused to lose another.

* * *

"You seem amused."

Krolia merely arched a brow, turning to look back at her. Her expression had barely changed since the princess and her blue paladin left, making a hasty exit to return to the Castle of Lions, but she could tell that there was a twinkle of something in her eyes that hadn't been there before.

"It's nothing." Krolia said. "I was just thinking how convenient it is that the paladins are already preparing themselves for the witch without our interference."

Linum's eyes narrowed. "Do you think she'll come?"

Closing her eyes, Krolia shook her head. "I don't know."

It was not the answer she wanted. It wasn't the answer Krolia wanted either, she sensed. Looking out the window, she let her gaze continue past the city, out towards the desert.

She couldn't see Cinque's shop from here, she thought.

"In that case," Linum turned on her heel to face Krolia, "-we shall have to prepare for anything."

She was the one who had made the choice to drag her people into this. It was her responsibility to ensure that they made it out in one piece.

And she would _not _fail them.

* * *

"You hungry?"

Shi- _he _glanced up, mild surprise written on his features. He hadn't even noticed the door to his cell opening, much less Cinque entering. He'd been too... well, not _focused_, but he definitely hadn't been paying attention. He was just too wrapped up in his own thoughts to notice how much time had passed.

In his defense, he had _a lot_ to think about.

"I-" he began, about to say _no_ before his stomach said otherwise, "-yes."

Cinque hummed, before setting a bowl down in front of him. It didn't exactly look _appetizing_, but he guessed under the circumstances he should just be glad they were even bothering to feed him. They could just as easily let him starve.

It was a hard thought to swallow, knowing that one of _them _was Keith. But then again... he wasn't exactly Shiro.

He never had been.

He'd turned it over in his head again and again, but that was the only thing that made sense. No matter how much some part of him desperately wanted to believe that Keith was either lying (he _wouldn't _do that) or mistaken (he'd sounded so _certain_), it just... didn't match up to reality. Not when the reality was that he'd been feeling as if something was off long before now.

He just hadn't wanted to admit it.

But a clone... a clone made sense. Too _much _sense.

Picking up the bowl, he forced himself to smile. "Thanks."

Cinque said nothing, but she didn't _leave _either. Pushing aside how unnerved her stare made him, he took a bite. Thankfully it wasn't as bad as it looked, but it already had him longing for the taste of Hunk's cooking- or Adam's.

...except he'd never actually tasted Adam's cooking, had he? They'd never even met.

He swallowed, the food feeling like a stone in his throat. He remembered (but did he really?) watching a movie like this once, where the protagonist turned out to not be who he thought he was. Everything had tied up so nicely in the movie, but it turned out that the reality was nothing like the movies.

No, the reality was a lot messier.

Even worse, he'd been used to spy on the paladins. They had all nearly _died _because of him.

_Keith _had nearly died because of him.

"Where's," he briefly hesitated, unsure if he should even ask, "-where's Keith?"

He expected Cinque to stonewall him, but instead she arched a brow. "Why?"

"I just-" he began, before realizing he wasn't sure _what _he wanted to say to Keith. Sorry I'm not who you thought I was? Sorry I nearly got you killed? I didn't know?

It all sounded so meaningless. What would even happen if he apologized? Keith wouldn't forgive him, and he had every right _not _to. He'd probably be justified if he just killed him on the spot.

One less mole for Haggar.

"Nothing," he finally said, "-it's nothing. You said my- my connection to Haggar was cut?"

"We wouldn't risk this operation if we couldn't do it." Cinque simply stated.

"Good point." Shiro admitted. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you more."

At least that was the honest truth. He might not be Takashi Shirogane, but whoever he was instead still wasn't the kind of person who would willingly ally themselves with the remnants of Zarkon's Empire- even if _he _was one too.

"Do you mean that?"

Jerking his head up, he nearly dropped his bowl.

That hadn't been Cinque.

"I said," Keith began, stepping inside, "-do you mean that?"

Staring up at Keith, his words briefly eluded him. He'd shed his Blade armor, leaving even more discolored, scarred skin visible, but that wasn't what he was focused on.

His eyes weren't as cold anymore.

"Yes," he said, finding his voice again, "-yes, I do."

Keith held his gaze, before closing his eyes, slightly turning away. For a brief second, he feared he might leave without saying anything further, but then he opened them again, turning to look at him.

"Okay."


End file.
